


IOWA

by WarioGirl



Series: Inside the (SIC)ness [1]
Category: Slipknot (Band)
Genre: Accidental Bonding, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Angst and Tragedy, Corey is a bit of a dick but we love him for it!, Dark, Depression, Drug Addiction, Emotional Baggage, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Roller Coaster, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Experiments, F/M, Falling In Love, Fragile Sallie is fragile, Fuckbuddies, Gen, Hatred, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Intense, Loss of Virginity, Masks, Multiple Personalities, Not Suitable/Safe For Work, Original Character(s), Personal Favorite, Personal Growth, Personal story, Rape/Non-con Elements, Secret Crush, Self-Harm, Self-Hatred, Sex, Sex Toys, Slice of Life, Smoking, Suicidal Thoughts, They'll probably have angry/sad/comfort sex at some point, Unrequited Love, sex store
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:00:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 59
Words: 204,272
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23304295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WarioGirl/pseuds/WarioGirl
Summary: Sallie Knight's life had been a tragedy, born under a bad star. When she moves to Iowa with her father and his cruel new wife, Sallie's life is at breaking point to the point she wants to end it. She finally finds an escape with her new, first job, LOVERS PLAYGROUND, a sex store at the edge of Des Moines. There, she meets her Supervisor, Corey Taylor, and while the pair start off with awkward conversations and bitter exchanges, their hatred for the world, for each other and their equal sense of tragedy and depression brought them closer.Corey becomes Sallie's only escape from her cruel reality, and she becomes Corey's only escape in his dark thoughts and inner demons. When a friendship is formed, she finally meets IOWA, Corey's distraught latex mask he created when he is hired as the new singer for the small band called SlipKnoT, and immediately becomes attracted to it...
Relationships: Corey Taylor/Original Character(s)
Series: Inside the (SIC)ness [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1741753
Comments: 115
Kudos: 75





	1. Prelude

**Author's Note:**

> Hello gang~~
> 
> Yeah, I've yeeted another story. This time all driven by my own thoughts. I've personally been having a bad time the last several weeks and needed an escape. And this is it. I've always wanted to write some sort of origin story involving my persona with Corey, and this was a fun and interesting start.
> 
> A very personal story to me that I wanted to share. It's going to be deep, not for the faint of heart and VERY dark. I do not wish to hold back, I'm just writing what comes to me.
> 
> As you know, with ALL Slipknot-related fanfictions, these situations and characters are inspired by real events and real people, BUT DO NOT REFLECT them in anyway, shape or form. I am merely taking them and twisting it for fictional purposes. So please regard this as a fictional story created by a slipknot fan and an idiot that needed a way out of her mind.
> 
> All events and times and such are not true to the actual facts, just manipulated a little for the sake of a story, so it won't be truly dedicated to the history of Slipknot.
> 
> Thank you, and please enjoy~!
> 
> WARIO-GIRL

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beautiful front cover of IOWA by @supertracpac. 
> 
> Thank you for your godly work! <3

# 

# 

# 

** **

**1994, August.**

Sallie Knight opened her eyes, staring down at a toilet bowl. She felt dizzy, _sick_.

But she didn't know what had happened, like she had blanked her memories from the last 24 hours. She only remembered the one time where she got food poisoning...but it wasn't _this_ bad. Panic surged inside of her as she felt vomit rising in her throat, the acidic burn scorching at her throat and she threw up again, unsteadily. It tasted creamy, the texture almost like rice pudding.

When Sallie tried to move again, her body slumped against the toilet, taking long, deep breaths.

Today was going to be her first day of work, and she was nervous. _Too_ nervous.

A striking pang of pain struck the back of her skull, barely recalling where she was.

_Home._

Or what _used_ to be her home. Now it was a prison, for the house was fitted for two people and two people only. Sallie...she was just there for decoration.

"Sallie!" Her father called her from downstairs. "You having breakfast with us or not?"

_Why now? Why invite me for breakfast when all you've ever fucking done was make food for yourselves and left me alone? Is this a fucking special occasion?_

_S_ he lifted her hand, which trembled staggeringly, and she noticed her middle and index finger covered in her own spew, her hand splattered from splashback.

_Fuck...I hate myself..._

A compulsive urge told her to do it again.

She shoved her fingers down her throat, pushed, and threw up again. This time, blood painted the vomit, and she hacked saliva and snot out of her system, trying to clean herself. Trying to become a _better_ person...

" _Sallie!_ " The shrieking voice of Sam rose from the kitchen, and it shocked through her ear as if she was standing next to her. She had such a disgust, nasally voice, a voice that instantly brought out the hatred through her heart, and it bled through her body and conscious like a cancer.

Sallie felt a sudden burst of anger hearing that voice, as if she had been reminded that _she_ existed, and she turned away from the toilet, her eyes furious at the door.

"Fucking _wait!_ " She snapped, turning back to the toilet bowl, looking at the excess vomit her body spat back. She swallowed, her headache throbbing. This is what she had become, a spewing mess of self-hatred and an unspeakable anger that she was so oblivious in having.

_I have never known such a raw hate until you took my fucking mother away from me…_

She glared up to the ceiling with hate poisoning her dark eyes, as if staring at the invisible face of a mythical man that many in this damn city seemed to have belief for, except herself. That fictitious bastard had just tormented her, and he began with killing her mother off when she was a child.

“Twelve…fucking _twelve_ …” She snarled under her breath and punched her fist at the toilet seat, her fist connecting with the wooden frame harshly.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

Sallie snapped around to find that the door to the bathroom slightly open, and the leering aged face of Sam glared through the crack. "Hurry up, Sallie. I thought you had died. I need the bathroom." Sam jeered, eyeing Sallie up and down. She was still in her pyjamas. "You're not even dressed, you dirty fucking cow."

Sallie straightened suddenly, horrified to have been spied on. She stormed to the door and immediately kicked it closed, violently. That's the second dent in the bathroom door, all done for the same reason. Sam.

" _Fuck off!_ "

Sam made a hideous noise of disgust behind the door.

Sallie felt tears threatening her as she shook, pushing her body against the door to stop Sam from breaking in again.

"Honey, your daughter just kicked the fucking door in my face!" Sam sneered, her voice fading as she walked downstairs. Sallie vaguely heard the disgruntled voice of her father but didn't hear the words. Probably some frustrated comment followed by _'fucking Sallie'_.

Sallie gripped onto her sickly stomach, her back against the door and bowed her head. She wanted to throw up again, to punish herself for being alive, but she was drained. So drained and empty, but not hungry. Her body craved for food, but it was as if her own brain blanked that need out, too numb to function properly.

Gradually, she picked herself up and looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair wasn't brushed, scattered strands of dark brown, near-enough black, as if to suit her current mood. She ran a hand down her face, feeling the grease building up behind her pores, her eyes dark and defeated. The colour of her blue eyes lost during her depression and anger. She felt horrible, disgusting. _Unlovable_...

Her lips were bruised from all the biting she did. She stared at her face, a vacant image of soulless despair and hatred. The end of humanity. She hated everything about herself, despised her look.

_I wish I wore a fucking mask…_

A mask would have done her face justice. Unable to bear the thought of looking at other people, feeling their judgemental gazes latch onto her like leeches, sucking whatever little life she had left. She hated her nose, despite knowing it was perfectly normal. Not too pretty, not too hideous. Just an average nose, but she _hated_ it. Hatred was all she knew, and it was far easier than accepting herself. She was doomed with this grim curse, and she was trying to accept it as a way of her life.

Her eyes stayed on her lips, and slowly she hooked a finger at each corner of her mouth and pulled, forcing a smile. It was gross, forced and unattractive, her coffee-stained teeth leered back at her.

She hadn't smiled properly since...

The day before her mother died...

_I need to get ready for work…_

Approaching the door, Sallie listened to hear Sam and Mr. Knight downstairs, and knowing she had time to sneak back into her room, she hurried out of the bathroom after cleaning her self-harming evidence of vomit and hurried back to get dressed.

* * *

Black. All black. She was grateful for this. A plain black shirt buttoned all the way to the top, black jeans and her tanker boots. Her hair was tied in a strict ponytail, knowing she needed to tidy herself up for her first day of work.

By the time she reluctantly went to the kitchen, her father was sitting by the dining room table. The table was laid out with three placemats for _three_ people. That was the first time ever. It had _always_ been two.

Her father cocked a brow at her attire.

“Going to a funeral?” He chuckled, implying a joke. Sallie simply stared, feeling numb to the pathetic attempt of normality. He was trying, trying to make this as normal as a normal family household should be. But while she understood his efforts, she didn’t appreciate any of them. She and her stepmother never gotten along, and while he was fully aware of the thunder between the two, he was blissfully ignorant and tried to force a friendship between the two.

After enough failed attempts in pleasing her father, Sallie shortly gave up.

“First day of work.” Sallie said, her tone deadpan. “I told you before.”

He blinked, shaking his head.

“I don’t remember you telling me.”

Typical. The same excuse he uses every time. It wasn’t that he doesn’t remember, he just doesn’t seem to care enough to actually _acknowledge_. If it didn’t involve Sam, he wouldn’t care to remember it.

Instead of arguing back at him, Sallie decided to say nothing, and slowly sat at the far end of the dining table. Sam and Mr. Knight’s places were nuzzled close together, with Sallie’s place intentionally as far as possible as if she was self-isolated.

From the small, narrow kitchen she could see that horrible woman. Her father’s wife, her shitty stepmother. She wasn’t too tall, perhaps a little taller than Sallie who was barely 5’4’’, and skinny as humanly possible. She was one of those health-freaks that insisted in exercising every day, who ate those glorified healthy options and exalted ‘super-foods’ the celebrity TV shows hyped about. She was also the kind of person who would always judge a person and had no fear or shame in hiding it. Her eyes venomous, her expression never shaded in privacy. If she was disgusted, you’d know it. That would greatly embarrassed Sallie. She hated going to restaurants with her. The sort of customer anyone in any industry despised, who would complain and use the ‘Customer is always Right’ card just to have her way. Sallie winced at the memory of eating in a Steak house with her once, and her nose wrinkled at the freshly cooked chips and complained they were too cold, demanding them to be microwaved. Sallie had to excuse herself in the bathroom to hide from the leering eyes of other people, feeling so sickened with shame for an inconsiderate person, and her father was _okay_ with this…

_Mum was never like this…_

Sallie swallowed hard, subtly composing herself.

Sam was several things Sallie despised. She had a ‘Holier than Thou’ personality, who would always make out that she was worse off than you. If Sallie had a cold, Sam would have the flu. If someone felt tired, she was _exhausted_. And there was always a medical reason behind it. For a very sickly person, she was rather fit with her obsessive exercising needs. She has a car but walked everywhere. She has a scooter but would rather cycle on her bicycle. And while she had these luxuries, Sallie was left with whatever little money she had left from college, and suffered with public transport, which wasn’t the greatest. She was never offered help from either her father or stepmother, and never expected it.

She was just so grateful she was accepted for this job, so she could have her own income and leave this place.

Sam approached the dining table from the kitchen, her hair thin and silvery with an off-white colour, wiry and thin, pulled back in the same ponytail she wore since the day Sallie met her. Despite being younger than her father, she was terribly aged, resembling the face of a 60-year-old than a 40-year-old. She looked _awful_ , and that was Sallie trying to be nice.

Sam placed a mug of coffee for Mr. Knight and Sallie, casting Sallie a bitter look before dismissing her and walked back to the kitchen. Sallie peered down at the coffee. It was black as hell, with the smallest amount of diluted milk. Bitter, no doubt with a fake sugar cube that was supposed to be good for your health. Those disgusting sweeteners. Sallie _hated_ them.

Sallie picked the cup up shakily, eager to drink the blissful substance of caffeine into her deprived system.

**_She poisoned it._ **

That vile thought made her hesitate, and she immediately placed it down, not touching it again. She wanted the coffee so badly, but she was so convinced it was poisoned now.

Her father noticed her hand shaking, so _terribly_ , her small fingers tapping on the polished surface of the table.

“You okay, love?” He asked her. “You’re shaking.”

Sallie knew exactly why, the forced vomiting had compelled her body to suddenly be injected with adrenaline, the next best thing from caffeine, and it was still blowing up inside of her. But she replied:

“Nervous about the job.”

“What are you working as?” He asked, and Sallie had to think _very_ carefully. She knew for a fact that Sam was listening to _every single_ word. She knew that whatever Sallie had to say, it was never good enough, unless she was part of a successful band, or a shitty celebrity.

“Retail.” She simply said through a clenched throat. Her father tilted his head.

“Oh, which store?”

“ _Merle Hay Mall_ …”

“He said _which store_ , not _where!_ ” Sam sneered from the kitchen, confirming Sallie’s suspicions.

“ _Target_!” Sallie instinctively snapped, seeing the glare from Mr. Knight and she retreated into the sullen silenced child Sam had broken her into.

“ _Target_ …” The woman snorted in disgust; Sallie can imagine her face. “I worked in retail when I was 16. Got promoted after being there for a few months.” She said this with an acidic tone, as if mocking her. “I was a supervisor for several years.”

_Did they even fucking allow women to work back in your days? I didn’t even think they had retail stores in the stone ages._

Even the cynical thought didn’t amuse her. It didn’t really help her. Her voice was even more suppressed that even her own consciousness didn’t want to acknowledge it.

“You’re 20 years of age now, Sallie. You should be getting married and having kids.” Sam added. “Not getting your first job.”

“I don’t _want_ kids.” Sallie hissed, repeating the same comment she had been saying the last several years. “I don’t fucking want any.”

“Language, Sal,” Her father sighed in slight exasperation. He hated how his daughter had developed a nasty habit of swearing. This stemmed from the distress of losing her mother so suddenly. “You’ll want kids, one day. It’s different when they are yours.”

His daughter gave him a hot glare.

“I’m sticking with cars.”

“You’re an idiot.” Sam’s nasally voice floated from the kitchen and seemed to have slapped Sallie. Such a simple statement, but her already-fragile conscious was willing to take the abuse. Now that was another descriptive definition she had for herself.

Again, her father didn’t react.

“When I was 20, I had _two_ job and my first house.” Sam spoke up again, displaying her tiresome achievements that Sallie didn’t care. Everything that Sallie did was never good enough, and Sam would find every opportunity to make her feel even more worthless.

Sinking back in her seat, Sallie looked at her phone. 9:19AM. She had considered going to work early, and while she thought that would be a good idea, she didn’t want to seem so desperate…

Sam returned, placing a plate of cooked food in front of her father, and then placed some down herself. Then she sat. Sallie looked up, her eyes glancing at the kitchen and back at them, as if questioning where her breakfast was. While her father eagerly scoffed up his cooked bacon and eggs, Sam saw Sallie’s reaction. “You didn’t come down when we asked.” She simply stated, turning her nose in the air. “There is bacon in the fridge if you want some, but no eggs.”

Sallie wasn’t falling for that again. She had been tricked many times where she made food herself and was forced to wash her own and _their_ dishes, despite not even eating what they’re having and such. Instead, Sallie only gave Sam a disgusted glare before standing up from the table and turned back to her room.

She was starving now and would go to work feeling like that. Promptly, she got her jacket ready, her phone and purse, and hurried down the stairs. She unlocked the door with her keys and opened it.

“Hope you don’t get fired on the first day. With that attitude, I’d be surprised you’d stay for a week.” Sam’s voice floated through the corridor. Sallie didn’t dare look back, but she felt the witch standing by the doorway of the kitchen, watching her with those distasteful eyes and crooked frown, her aged face making Sallie livider the more she thought of it.

She wanted to react, she so desperately wanted to say something, or even _hit_ the woman, but instead she composed herself and stormed out without saying goodbye.

Sometimes she wished she didn’t have a reason in returning to this place she no longer called home. But she loved her father so much, despite his priorities being in the wrong place, and it crippled her.


	2. Lovers Playground

# 

** **

Thankfully, there was a bus route that took Sallie directly from her home to the location of her new place of employment. Putting her large headphones over her ears, she sat comfortable in the seat, looking down at the small black MP3 player. She had this thing for years, and it was so good to her. Music was like a soothing drug for her, one that wasn’t illegal and hurt her. Music was like the soul-reader of her inner pain, the only thing to make her forget about her own troubles and issues, and to remind her that there are some good people in the world.

The band like _Metallica_ kept her going, with their heavy guitar riffs and sensual singing, she loved her heavy metal and rock. People like Sam never appreciated her kind of music. She would scream and complain whenever Sallie played her CDs in the CD player in her room, calling her music _Satanic_ and would try to get her to shut it down. This coming from the same person who would listen to the same damn track so much to the point Sallie despised the song and could never listen to it anymore over the radio.

Sallie shook, feeling the nerves overwhelming her now. Work didn’t start until 10:30AM, and Sallie knew that it would be rude to just turn up now…but she had nowhere else to go.

_Anywhere but home…_

She was hungry at this point, feeling her stomach churning and biting at her insides, trying to eat itself. But she had to keep going. MacDonald’s wasn’t nearby, and she didn’t feel like eating, despite knowing she needed to.

Leaning her forehead against the glass of the bus, she stared at the derelict city of Des Moines, Iowa. She loved and hated this place. Many of the people were cold, neglectful, nothing like the colourful characters back in California. Hell, even her birthplace, England, was brighter than this.

She smiled flatly at her own distressed reflection, staring blankly. She hated how she turned up here. Her American father worked abroad and fell in love with her mother back in England. Like a romantic fairy-tale in the way her mother told her how they met, he stayed and married her in England, and thus Sallie Knight was born.

But when her mother died from a sudden death, it seemed that it not only broke the twelve-year-old child, but also broke her father. Two years had passed after her death, and after seeing multiple women, that was when her father met Sam.

And at first, Sallie was _okay_ with Sam. She felt some sort of cold connection, cold, but it was something at least. She remembered being fifteen and talking about boys with her, and actually felt okay for a moment. But then Sam turned, becoming bitter, a façade, a fucking _lie_. She would cruelly bully Sallie, calling her names and destroying her already crippling self-esteem.

Feeling unable to bear living in England anymore, they moved back to the states. Sallie was forced to part with friends and family in a decision she had no part involved with. She just had to accept it. First, they lived in California, and after a few destructive years, her father finally married Sam. By then, Sallie and Sam were officially not on talking terms. They would blank each other and not talk, and Sam would purposely barge into Sallie if she didn’t move. And when Sallie gathered the courage, she would give her the same treatment, only to be frowned at for her ‘rude actions’. Sallie would lock herself up in her room or stay with a friend, or even stay in school.

And when her father got married with Sam, Sallie wasn’t invited.

And even if she did, she wouldn’t have attended. She spent that same day playing video games with her friend. She didn’t understand what happened, but she figured that her father had an argument with his cousin over Sam’s treatment of her and his selfish ways, and after several family breakups, that was when Sam and her father decided to move away. Move _somewhere_ else.

And thus, boring depressing Iowa.

And she had been here since then, lacking friends and rarely leaving her room. She was just simply waiting to never wake up one day, to have hopefully died in her sleep just to get some form of respite from this torture. She had nowhere to go and being cremated into ash was the only thing she could think of.

She only hoped this job worked well enough for her to give her a chance to _leave_ and live her life finally…

But her life wasn’t a fucking beautiful fairy-tale like her mother’s and father’s. No, it was a Shakespearean Comedy and Tragedy. Her whole existence was full of tragedy and she was the fucking joke…

Sallie couldn’t bear telling them where she truthfully worked. She knew that she would be the running gag of jokes for weeks upon weeks, and that comments will be made. She didn’t need it; she didn’t want it. She just wanted her own income, and while it wasn’t exactly the best thing, it was _something_ , an excuse to get her out of the house.

Her hand slid to the button and she pushed it with her thumb, a bell ringing to announce this was her stop. She stood up and walked to the front of the bus.

The bus pulled to the side slowly and thanking the driver she got off and began walking down. She had made her way there once for her interview, so she now knew where she was going. She walked with her head down, her eyes vaguely aware of the path ahead of her, carefully dodging anyone that was walking towards her. The streets were mostly empty, so she didn’t worry about it too much. Turning down a couple of streets, she found herself walking by a highway, the traffic hammering down it at frightening speeds. She was grateful for the elusive location of her new workplace, considering what it was.

After fifteen minutes of walking, she found herself edging back inside, away from the highway, coming to the quieter edge of Des Moines, and there she saw it. Her new workplace.

Luckily, it was subtle and discreet, a one-floored building with an empty parking lot on its right, sandy-white brickwork with hidden windows, and a simple sign just above the single white door.

**LOVERS PLAYGROUND**

Sallie swallowed at the sight of it again, as if seeing it for the first time.

It was a sex store. From the story she heard from it, their last employee got fired for excessive sick days. Sallie didn’t know the details but according to her manager, Emma, their last employee had a shocking attendance, and she finally fired her. Something told Sallie there was something more to it, but she shrugged it off, and was just grateful the job was just given to her there and then. She brimmed with a fortified confidence hiding her true nature, and her knowledge of sex in general was enough. It was only a small store, with one store manager, a supervisor and herself. She didn’t mind it, however. She would rather just stay with a small team.

She glanced at her Nokia.

9:45AM.

_Fuck it…_

Turning her music off and tucking her headphones into her bag, she finally approached the store, and rang the buzzer.

She waited outside for a bit, watching a car driving past down the empty road and waited. Hearing nothing, she frowned, turning back to push the buzzer again only to see a woman’s face glaring through the frosted window. From the colour of her hair and stature, she knew it was Emma. Sallie flinched as the door opened. Emma was a naturally beautiful woman, tall and slim, her black hair tied in a ponytail and wore her uniform in pride, her name-badge pinned to her buttoned shirt. She had a cute button nose, it looked rather sharp and pointed, giving her an aura of power and royalty, almost.

Emma looked down at Sallie.

“Hi, why are you here so early?” It was a harmless question, one of curiosity, but Sallie felt like it was a stab at her. She didn’t know why.

“Sorry, I hope it’s not a problem.” Sallie replied calmly, giving her a small smile. “I got dropped off and thought I’d start early.”

Emma cocked a brow, seemingly confused by this.

“You do realise you won’t get paid until 10:30, right?”

Sallie nodded with a small shrug.

“I honestly don’t mind. I can use it to get to know the store and such.”

_And to fucking get me away from home…_

Emma pouted, but she seemed okay with this. She stepped aside and opened the door, letting Sallie inside. The door was closed and locked behind her, for it didn’t open to the public until 10AM.

“Just put your stuff in the staff room and I’ll introduce you to Corey when he gets here.”

Sallie glanced back, halting.

“Corey?”

“He’s your Supervisor. I’ve got a business trip to make tonight, so you two will need to work together.”

Giving her a fragile smile, Sallie nodded.

“That’s okay.” She promptly did as she was told, rushing to the back where she had her interview with Emma and placed her bag to the far corner, returning to the shop floor.

The store was naturally wide, the centre almost empty. Square pillars dotted around the entire space, support beams for the old building, and around each beam was an array of sex toys, lubrications and porno magazines. Some lingerie and sexy nightdresses hung on silver coat-hangers above. From the windows, which were tall and narrow with a gorgeous velvet piece of pink curtain neatly tied to one side, their small square panes were blocked by something white, allowing natural sunlight to bless the building without giving off invasion of privacy. The windows were safe and private. The entire walls were the same off-cream colour, slotwalls, the kind of wall that had horizontal grooves in them, allowing hanging bars to be clipped onto them. Each wall was categorized with different items: Strap-Ons, Anal Toys, Cock-Rings, Pocket Pals, Bondage, Lingerie and Queen Sizes. There was even a _Clearance_ section beside the Staff-Only doorway next to the counter.

The counter was the most impressive, having several glass display cabinets sitting on the counter. Almost a wall of glass surrounded the till, with only one way in and one way out. These glass cabinets held an assortment of lighters, bongs and tobacco, and some others even had extremely expensive vibrators.

Emma caught Sallie looking, and with a small smile she said:

“Don’t worry about the Tobacco Station. I’ll let Corey handle that, you just take care of this.” Her arm waved at the store front. Sallie took note of the mannequins donned in sexy lingerie and latex catsuits. She had to admit, these mannequins were pretty and not creepy, for once. Even their breasts were moulded naturally, hanging low, not round and perky while wearing ‘invisible bras’ like those higher clothes stores. That was something she found most attractive about these kinds of stores. They were _incredibly_ down-to-earth. “You’re lucky. Mondays are our quietest days, and Fridays and Saturdays are our busiest. So, you’ll have plenty of time to get used to here and the customers.”

Sallie nodded, walking towards the two small cubicles at the other side of the counter, peering through the silken curtain.

There was a rattling of keys by the front door, and Sallie instinctively looked behind her.

Emma didn’t seem to be bothered by it, for she knew who it was. She was approaching behind the counter, turning her attention to the till.

The door opened and a man walked in. Sallie blinked, assuming he was her supervisor considering how casually he just walked in with a set of his own keys. A cigarette hung from his lips, and he was taller than Sallie, wearing baggy black pants and a dark green hoodie. Sallie’s attention immediately went to his face, strikingly handsome, clean shaven with blue eyes that almost mirrored her own. What was most fascinating was the blond small dreadlocks he had, little thick ropes that hung over his thick eyebrows, and many were tucked behind his ears. It was uncommon to see dreadlocks, so Sallie was immediately looking and admiring them.

He caught her staring, and when he fired a hot glare at Sallie, she took it as a warning shot and looked back at Emma, feeling sick with grief at being caught staring.

“Morning Corey,” Emma said, not looking up from the till.

“Mornin’,” The Supervisor murmured, approaching the counter, completely ignoring Sallie now. Sallie decided to distract herself with the accessories, looking numbly at a lewd poster of a woman posing with a frighteningly-perfect round ass.

_That’s not human…_

She heard Corey murmuring something to Emma, along with Emma saying _‘New staff member’_ and _‘taking Jodie’s place’_. Corey seemed to have grunted in response and retreated to the staff room. When he was gone, Sallie glanced over her shoulder.

Emma was still hyper-focus on the tills, possibly cashing it up and counting. Saying nothing, Sallie just looked away.

For another painful ten minutes of silence, Emma finally finished, walking away from the till, grabbing her bag from the counter and hanging it over her shoulder.

“Right,” She announced, rubbing her hands together and turning to the front. Sallie was already paying attention, and Corey had slowly left the staff room, wearing a baggy black shirt with his name-badge lazily pinned onto it, taking a deep inhale of his cigarette. “Gonna open up now, and I shall see you in a week.”

Sallie’s eyes widened.

“A week?” She accidently repeated out loud. Emma heard her and faced her. Corey vaguely looked at the small woman in distaste.

“Yes, remember. My business trip. Got a meeting with HQ and I want to return to this place looking how I left it.” She waved a hand to Corey. “Corey will take care of you.” Sallie didn’t dare look at him, he brought in a lethal menacing impression, and Sallie felt inclined in avoiding his bad books. Merely nodding in response, Emma was satisfied. “Right, I’ll see you both later this week.” And with that, she turned on her heels and walked out of the store without a second glance back.

The store manager had just left, the store was officially open, and Sallie was far more lost and confused.

After a moment of trying to figure out what was happening, Sallie slowly glanced at Corey. He was leaning on the counter, looking down at a magazine he had stashed behind the till, and began reading the intense ‘articles’ about the half-naked woman at the front, her nipples on display and out of the open.

Gathering her strength, Sallie meekly approached the counter. Even though her presence was obvious, Corey dismissed her, the ashes of the cigarette burning constantly.

“Um…hi…” She greeted in a small voice. Again, Corey didn’t respond. She stepped closer now, standing before him at the other side of the counter. “I’m…Sallie…nice to meet you.”

“Corey.” He stated bluntly, his teeth clenching the butt of the cigarette. That flippant reply made Sallie back away slightly. She watched him for a while, glancing at the magazine and looking back up when she was disgusted in the centrefold, she laid her eyes on his hair. His dreadlocks were almost perfectly maintained, obviously retained carefully. The dreadlocks rolled down his shoulder, little ropes of matted, braided hair.

Corey looked up, his eyes sharp and evidently screamed: _Get Lost!_ Sallie immediately backed away again, turning away, and Corey looked back down when he was satisfied that she obeyed.

Her eyes focused on the store, trying to use instincts and look for any source of work…but-

“Um…what do you want me to do?” She asked meekly.

“Not stare at me for one thing.” He murmured darkly, turning the page. “Hate people fucking staring at me.”

“I-I’m sorry-”

“Never seen a man before?” Came the bitter insult. Sallie shook terribly.

“N-No, it’s not that. It’s…” She lost her strength then, and as Corey glared up at her again, she started again. “What do you want me to do?” She asked again, taking the conversation elsewhere.

Corey didn’t bother looking up, his eyes fixated on a blond pigtailed ‘schoolgirl’.

“Just tidy. That’s all you can do in this shit hole.” He murmured.

Sallie hesitated in talking, finding no point in talking to a brick wall. She began to walk around, her eyes looking at the erotic toys and decorations. She turned to the dildo stand, seeing one that sat on the ground, her eyes wide in mute-horror. Clearly thicker than her forearm, the thing almost as tall as her shin, she was pondering if it was humanly possible to shove such a large toy inside oneself. Her eyes glanced at the stand, noticing the dildos were placed, but not facing, as if lazily stacked there. So, she decided to face them all in the same direction, making it look neater. It was okay, until she found one with a suction cup, and it was pushed down onto the glass shelf with a force. Carefully, she tried to peel the suction cup, trying to be delicate, and in her dismay it popped off, making the glass shelf shake, and the dildos collapsed and rolled off onto the floor, hitting the floor with definite thuds.

Corey looked up from his magazine, his eyes holding a terrible fire as if he was a librarian hearing voices. “The fuck are you doing?” He grilled.

“Sorry!” Sallie squeaked quickly, gathering the dildos and held them in her arms, shaking. Her knees buckled. “I’ll fix it.”

Corey muttered something under his breath, and Sallie felt the need to cry. She felt the same treatment in her workplace as she was at home. She was hoping to get some form of a break from this, but to her disappointment, she was wrong.

Precariously, she placed the dildos back, biting back tears as she lined them up neatly, and when she looked at her display, she felt no satisfaction with it.

 _Pointless_.

She turned back to Corey, and decided to try talking to him again, giving him pathetic icebreakers just to feel at ease.

“So,” She waited for him to look at her. He didn’t. She carried on regardless. “How long have you worked here for?”

“Long enough.” He grumbled. Sallie thought of another quick question, simply wanting to know her supervisor.

“You…local here?”

Corey groaned, tired of her questioning and slammed his hand on the counter, making the little woman flinch.

“You done interrogating me?” He asked in a heated sigh, finally looking up and staring at her hard. Sallie stared back, her eyes unable to remove themselves from his intense stare, like a military sergeant glaring at his subordinate.

“Y-You can ask me stuff too…” Came the pathetic answer.

“Okay.” Corey leaned on the counter, his eyes looking up in mock-thought, fingers interlaced with one another. Then he looked back at her, his expression serious. “You a virgin?”

Sallie shuddered violently, feeling sick.

“P-Pardon?”

“You a virgin?” He shot back, just as firmly as the first time, no hesitation.

“I…didn’t mean _those_ kinds of questions-”

“You said I can ask you stuff, and so I’m asking you.” Corey replied with a hint of hostility in his tone, giving Sallie a tight, hard smile. He stared down at the little woman, then he noticed an accent. “British?”

Sallie meekly nodded. Then he nodded, his mocking smile hardening. “You Brits have sex too, right? Or is it too _dirty_ for you?”

Sallie’s brows furrowed. Ahh, a reaction, _finally_.

“Yes, we do.” She replied, her voice wavering but held an edge to her tone. “But I-” Corey leaned over the counter, his eyes widened as his smile grew more bitterly cruel, like a high-school bully watching his victim about to cry.

She immediately shook her head. “I don’t _have_ to tell you!”

Corey smacked his lips in annoyance, nodding, and then he gave her a heartless shrug.

“Whatever. And here I thought we were gonna get along.” And with that, he resumed back to his porno magazine. Sallie could only stare at him, tilting her head to the side slightly and then finally looked away. Everything in this store seemed to be pristine, with no real need to readjust or tidy. She was lost, wandering around the store like a spare part.

The tension between the two was cold, _heavy_.

The first day was awkward, painful and long. With her supervisor being dismissive of her, reading his many collection of lewd magazines and constant smoking, Sallie could only try and distract herself, walking around the store in painful silence.

That was something she didn’t realise until now.

This store had no music, the source of life, and she was missing it.

But at least this place was better than home…


	3. Virgin

# 

** **

By the time Sallie had finished her shift, she wanted to offer to stay behind, but Corey just dismissed her. He had been sitting in the staff room smoking and watching something on the small portable TV, the picture quality terrible. When she bid him goodbye, he only waved a hand, and Sallie had to leave the building before she could allow herself to finally break-down.

She quickly turned behind the building and burst out into soundless, mournful tears, all the aching and supressed frustration finally having a release. Covering her mouth to mute her sobs, she wept silently behind the building, her eyes fixed to the ground, a blurry vision of dark blue grass, the air cold against her flustering cheeks.

It was becoming close to night-time, with Autumn here now the skies got darker earlier. As difficult and as mind-numbing boring it was, Sallie could only wish she stayed within those walls.

Corey was a dick. She didn’t like the way he treated her, but he was better company than coming home to a wench who had more power than her own father, who was now merely a stranger to her.

What had become of her life now? How she had suddenly lost everything, all hope, all potential in becoming a successful daughter to someone. Just when all her friends had devoted parents to help them succeed in their personal endeavours and achievements, she was stuck in a rut that was _given_ to her. She never asked for it, and when she tried to get help, all was rejected and removed from her.

Her friends were at University now or travelling the world.

She was stuck in Iowa, trapped under a toxic roof, with no strength to keep going, a shitty job with a dismissive supervisor and an unconcerned manager in a _perverted_ store…

And her mother was fucking _dead_.

Sallie was so drained from life, so mentally exhausted she didn’t have the strength to even commit suicide. Too much effort, too much attention on a pathetic excuse. But she was also _frightened_ , too scared in leaving her own father behind. Her dedicated love and suffering desperation in not losing him keeping her going. And so, she waited. She waited for her time, when she was at the wrong place, at the wrong time.

She was just going to allow the world to take her itself.

_I want to be with you Mum…_

But her father, she couldn’t leave him behind. A barrier between life and death, and while her mother was on death’s side, and her father was on life’s side, moving on, Sallie was stuck in the centre. A personal purgatory of self-hatred and waiting for the time when the justice scales of life ticked to one side, and she was either going to be blessed, or taken away from this terrible world.

She knew the biggest possibility of that result.

And she had to remind herself: That if she were to ever vanish off the face of the earth, her father would be _okay_ , he’d be fine, for he had _Sam_ , cunt, bitch, hell-whore, wench, witch, cock-snot, Satan…

She continued to sob softly into her hands, her fingers clenched and shook, her nails biting into the flesh of her palm as she tried to finish this break-down as quickly as she could. But for something as hysterical and destructive as her emotionally imbalance thoughts and misery, it was something that could not be rushed, and she kept crying, unable to stop. Even for a moment, she thought it had finished, only to crumble and sobbed into her hands again, slowly sliding down the brickwork of the building, sitting into the grass with her back against the wall, and she remained there for ten minutes until she was finally ready to return home and face another evening of bullying and reinforcement of her self-hatred.

* * *

Sallie closed the door behind her, locking it before tucking the key into her pocket and slowly began to walk up the stairs. From the faint buzz off the TV in the front room, she knew that her father and Sam was watching a movie.

“Hello?” Her father called out, as if needing to know who just came into the house. She halted midway up the stairs.

“Hey.”

“How was your first day?”

“It was fine.” Sallie only gave off simple replies, not wanting to go into details. From where she stood, her eyes lowered, hearing Sam muttering something to her father. She couldn’t make out what was said, but she decided to just retreat to her room. The less time she spent near her, the better she would feel.

Once she got to her bedroom, Sallie pushed her bookcase slightly over the door, to remove any potential threat of Sam barging into her room. Like that time Sallie had slept in, and Sam decided to wake her up…

…by throwing one of Sallie’s boots at her. The direct connection of the steel-toe of the boot hitting her skull while she slept, and the sudden assault made her jaw clench increasingly hard, cracking a tooth in the progress. It hasn’t healed since…

According to Sam, it was ‘a joke’, and her father didn’t even supported Sallie. He only stood back and allowed this to happen.

A hand ran unconsciously against the side of her skull, feeling the small dip in her cranium.

Dropping her bag on the floor lazily, she walked to her bed and collapsed onto it. She didn’t bother getting undressed. She just simply laid there, her eyes fixated on the corner of her room, a small vase of rotten flowers sat by the small windowsill. Flowers she had bought for her mother a month or so ago, and they had already died. She hadn’t bothered removing them. They had dried out, the colour of the roses now a grim off-pink shade.

She shut her eyes and sniffed.

And for some reason, her body decided that was enough. Enough physical and mental tolerance. Her body granted her permission to rest, and she fell in a restless sleep.

* * *

Sallie didn’t know what happened. She didn’t know _how_ it happened, but when her eyes opened without a cue of an alarm, she blinked.

She vaguely recalled the dream she had, amazed to remember _some_ details. It had been too long since she had a dream. But the only detail she recalled was that the moron supervisor was in her dream. She didn’t know why; Corey was just _there_ from what she remembered.

The heat from the sunlight was pleasantly warm on her legs.

That’s when she thought again.

_Why was it so much brighter?_

Then she felt a low rumble sink in her stomach, realization hitting her. She snatched her phone from her pocket, which had been squished under her thigh during the entire time she slept, and she glared at the neon-green screen.

9.14AM

 _“Shit!_ ” She piped up in horror, lunging herself out of bed. She was supposed to be leaving in under ten minutes. Still dressed in her uniform, she promptly fixed her shirt, which was now creased, and she doused herself with a mixture of deodorant and perfume, trying to fog out the smell of sleep off her body. It helped a little.

She yanked her hair out of her ponytail and manically brushed it, neatening it and ran to the bathroom. And even though she could hear her father and Sam muttering in their bedroom, their door cracked open slightly as if to eavesdrop her movements, Sallie didn’t stay home long. She practically sprinted out before she could be interrogated by Sam about why she was running late, followed by another lecture about how ‘amazing’ Sam was at her mythical achievements.

Sallie knew with prewarning grief that they were going to ask her about it when she came back.

And she was lucky. _Very lucky_. The bus was already running late, so she barely managed to catch it. With no food or liquid in her stomach for the past several hours, she was starting to feel physically sick, the urgency to throw up coming back to haunt her, her mind becoming nauseating and dizzy.

A drink of water back at work would help. Dehydration was also another treacherous thing to do to a frantic and sick mind.

* * *

Corey looked up when Sallie barged into _Lovers Playground_. He was standing by the magazine stand, no doubt looking for another porno magazine to satisfy his boredom. He looked up with displeased lifeless eyes and Sallie could only flash him a bright smile.

“You’re late.” He grumbled, and Sallie blinked.

“I’m not, it’s only-”

“You’re supposed to start your shift ten minutes before.”

Sallie had to look away to hide the upcoming scowl that scribbled on her face, not wanting to let her supervisor see. She rushed towards the staff room, dropping her bag and returning to the shop floor, meekly approaching Corey. She stood beside him, watching him staring intensely at the lewd magazine stand. Then, with a dirty grin, he snatched on up that had a goth girl plastered at the front, posing as a vampire.

“Mmm, come here…” He murmured to himself, sending a sickening ripple through Sallie. It was gross how he said it. Corey turned and walked to the counter, resuming back to his typical form of entertainment like yesterday.

Sallie only watched, finding herself becoming more and more frustrated with the way Corey was treating her. She cleared her throat casually, but even that wasn’t enough to bring Corey’s attention.

Her brows furrowed, her gaze dropping to the floor and she thought of something, something that would catch his attention. She just wanted to _talk_ , it was far better than the disheartening, pressing silence.

“I’m a virgin.”

Corey looked up promptly, his strong blue eyes entirely focused on her now.

Then a lewd smirk of triumph came to him.

“Oh, well now,” He grinned, folding his arms across the counter as he leaned over it, his full attention onto her and Sallie instantly regretted it. “Not even up the ass?”

Sallie shook her head.

“No, never actually had sex. I’ve…” She held two fingers and tried to find a polite term for it, but Corey interjected fluidly.

“You fucked your fingers, but never fucked a man, huh?”

“Never really bothered with guys,” Sallie replied in a small voice, pain subtly laced into her words. That reply was painfully true, and she now regretted it so much. “Too focused on my studies…and the constant moving around just never let me live my life.”

“Hmm, makes sense.” He murmured, his eyes never leaving her. “Ever fucked with a toy?”

It took Sallie a moment to realise what he meant.

“No, never. I’m too scared to have one in my house.”

“You live with family?”

“My dad and his wife.”

Sallie waited for Corey to reply. And she was surprised he didn’t reply. Instead, he was just staring at her, his eyes unblinking and intense, almost like he was trying to read her thoughts and history. She could only stare back, unsure if she should interrupt him. But it gave her time to admire his features, sharp jaw and firm brows, his eyes a remarkable shade of blue and for the first time she was lost in them.

It got to the point where Sallie and Corey had said nothing, but only stared at each other. Sweat prickled at the back of her neck, and in a small voice, Sallie broke the silence.

“What?”

He shook his head.

“Nothing, was just wondering what kind of a person you are in the bedroom.”

“Hey!” Sallie snapped, feeling embarrassed and disgusted. His eyes violating her through a moment she thought she connected with someone. “Why would you-!”

“You learn this habit when customers walk in.” He interrupted, straightening up and the moment was gone. “Sometimes you can tell what kind of person they are, and so you know what they are after in regard to sex toys and shit.” He shrugged, turning back to the magazine. “Might just be me.”

Sallie had no remark. But she took note of this, timidly nodding.

“What about you?”

Corey looked back at her as she edged closer to the counter. She was always on the other side of it, never invading Corey’s ‘throne room.’

“Hmm?”

“You a virgin?”

Corey emitted a loud snorting noise, evidently laughing at her question because his answer was so obvious, apparently.

“Nah, I fuck almost all the time.” He announced proudly.

 _I’m not surprised…._ Sallie docilely thought, her eyes spying the collar bone beneath his shirt.

“Had an orgy the last weekend gone.” He added, as if Sallie needed to know.

“Must be nice…” Sallie grumbled, partly disheartened, partly envious.

And it seemed Corey noticed the bitterness that spiked her voice. The first real thread of her very real personality came through.

“So wait…” Corey paused, watching Sallie backing away and keeping her distance now, feeling cold. The little woman turned to pay attention to the porno magazines and squatted down.

The dates were wrong.

Anything to keep her busy…

And she began to reorganize them by dates as her supervisor spoke. “…if you’re a virgin, how did you even get this job?” He was being genuinely honest now. He wasn’t here when she was interviewed, so he was now curious in how a small, little virgin could be hired for such an elaborate, raunchy sex store.

“Sex doesn’t scare me.” Came the soft reply. “Sex is normal, and should be treated as normal…” Her eyes dropped to her boots, feeling her stomach churning sickly for food. It was empty completely now, the acids burning her insides. She focused on entertaining her supervisor. “I…do a lot of research. I write.”

“Write?” Corey repeated, cocking a brow, faintly intrigued. “Like, you write porn?”

“Erotica?”

“Yeah, porn.”

Sallie hesitated, and she shrugged lightly.

“Sometimes, when I feel like it. Got a terribly active imagination.” Shuffling the magazines on the floor, she finally sat down, cross-legged, and began to put the magazines in separate piles. Her supervisor didn’t bite at her for this, thankfully. He seemed too enthralled with this conversation.

“Oh?” He interlaced his fingers together, propping his chin on his clasped hands as he rested his elbows on the table. From the corner of her eyes, he looked like an evil schemer, plotting. “And how do you research this?”

_I don’t…_

_…wanna tell you…_

“I hung out with a lot of boys when I was in school. I felt more comfortable with them than the girls.” She paused. “You know where this is going…” But Corey was cruel. He gestured his hand in a rolling motion, encouraging her to keep speaking. Sallie stared at him, her eyes dark and seemingly angry at this. But she obeyed reluctantly. “You men are horny all the time…I saw magazines, and strange animations on their phones. They thought it was funny, I was…ehh…” She stopped, not wanting to talk more, and began to prop the magazines back in their plastic stands.

“You were turned on, weren’t you?”

That question made Sallie freeze, because deep down it was correct, and they both knew it was true. She said nothing, however, not wanting to admit it. Not that she had to anyway. “I lost my virginity when I was 15.” Corey added after a while, pride in his tone. “To my babysitter.”

“How fucking gross…”

Corey heard that acidic murmur, and he frowned darkly for a time. He assumed she was calling _him_ gross, but when she spoke again, she cleared his thoughts. “You ask someone to babysit your child, only to allow them into your home and take advantage of your kids…”

“Hey, she was pretty hot. I didn’t say no.”

“She was breaking the _fucking_ law…” That bite was slowly coming back to Sallie’s voice, and Corey narrowed his eyes. There was a distaste in her voice that he recognised, so vividly. It almost hurt him to hear it.

He too had this bitterness inside of him, and to watch someone else suffer with this sulfuric burn of negativity, it was almost distressing to see.

Corey watched as she composed herself again, covering her face with both of her hands and he didn’t know if she was going to scream or cry. He saw himself sitting on the floor, right in front of him, full of dismay, hopelessness, hatred, sorrow, guilt…

She finally looked up and faced him.

“Can I get a drink please?”

Corey blinked and found her sitting there looking at him, her eyes vacant and stony. 

“Y-Yeah,” He pointed to the staff room behind him. “Just grab one. It’s fucking dead right now.”

“Thanks.” Sallie stood up and without another word, she walked past him, and into the staff room. Corey heard her grabbing a cup, rinsing it with the cold water and filled it, drinking it furiously. Chugging it down like it was nothing. Like an alcoholic. She drank like this about four times until she was satisfied.

Then she returned, dropping onto the floor by the magazines and began to reorganize them. Mute. Corey stared for a moment, his eyes finally falling onto the sexualised woman on the content page of the magazine.

Suddenly, he didn’t feel like looking at them.


	4. Jodie

# 

** **

Sallie hated that second shift. The rest of it became an intense silence between the two, and the conversation they had was simply recycling through her mind. Sallie was doing what she did best: scrutinizing the words and examined the conversation, decoding for some sort of secret information she completely missed out.

And the worst thing about it was that she found _nothing_. Nothing at all.

As her mind numbingly went through the same process of understand petty conversations, she was staring at her reflection again, her skin seemingly more pale than usual. Her eyes still exhausted and had an underlining urge to hurt people, an animalistic hatred that was buried beneath innocent calm eyes. But she knew the truth.

A small thought that Corey was at least interested in her came through, but it filtered through her thought process as quick as it came to her. It was almost like an automatic rejection.

Sallie watched her reflection, seeing how appealing she was.

In her eyes, she wasn’t.

_He doesn’t fucking like you. Don’t be dumb, you’re fucking ugly as hell...._

Sallie looked over her shoulder, seeing Corey now playing with his phone, texting intensely, leaning against the counter. Her eyes locked onto him.

The third shift now. So far, her life seemed to have been giving her some form of respite, even home was being a bit peaceful. She was safe being locked inside of her room. And when she returned to work the next day, while the silence was still lingering, it felt a little more…

…softer. A little more comforting, and that is what Sallie needed. She had been busying herself with the changing room, readjusting the feather boas that hung over the mirrors and that was when she ended up looking at herself.

_Mirrors…I hate mirrors…_

A song suddenly bloomed inside of the empty store, and Sallie turned to the source of it. It was coming off a small CD player beside Corey. She didn’t know where it came from, but there it was, and music was coming from the speakers, familiar music…the introduction of a distressed guitar and cold drums.

And that was when Sallie’s heart fluttered.

 _Metallica_.

And she recognised this song so quickly. She smiled sadly, a painful personal song…

 _My Friend of Misery_ …

From their latest album, Sallie felt her eye muscles tighten when she listened to it. Behind her, Corey was lighting another cigarette, his head bobbing slightly to the sorrowful guitar. That brought some hope to her. This was a great start, the fact that her supervisor enjoyed listening to _Metallica_ , something she could relate to.

Fixing the small curtain, she walked away, her body easing almost as instantly now, the music surrounding her and holding her in its safe arms, and finally she forgot about the hurt. She was standing by the bondage sets now, fixing the whips that were tangled and without thinking began to sing softly under her breath.

“ _You just stood there screaming. Fearing that no one’s listening to you. They say an empty can rattles the most. The sound of your own voice must soothe you._ ”

Corey’s head perked up when he registered what he was hearing, and to his surprise his suspicions were true. Pulling the cigarette out of his mouth, he blew out a cloud of fresh smoke.

“You know this song?”

Sallie stopped and looked at him, feeling her body stiffen and heat up with shyness. She had hoped he wouldn’t have heard her, but…

“ _Metallica_. I love them.”

“No fucking way,” Corey laughed, a small chuckle, impressed. That brought a little spark inside of her. It wasn’t a cruel, mocking laugh. He was actually…sounding pleased with this. “Never thought you’d be into rock.”

“Rock and Metal are my favourite…” Sallie smiled faintly, standing up and approaching the counter. “ _Metallica_ is awesome.”

Corey seemed to have approved of that statement.

“Finally, someone with good fucking taste.” Placing the cigarette back in his mouth, he scratched the back of his neck. “What other bands do you like-”

Sallie would have answered almost immediately, her excitement finally coming to her, but the sound of the door to the store opened, and she turned around.

A customer?

A fucking astonishing one…

With pride in every stride, a woman walked inside the store, posing an air of confidence that made Sallie assume she was a regular. It wasn’t a timid, shy, avoiding-eye-contact kind, the way she felt when she first entered this building. No, she _knew_ this place. Sallie stared, her eyes instantly locked onto her brilliant red hair, dyed to perfection as if she naturally grew it. It was a magnificent shade of red, so intense and pure. Her eye make-up was delicately done, so professionally, black eyeline surrounding her wide, bright blue eyes, mascara thick on her lashes. A nose ring glistened on the right nostril, matching red lips to compliment her attire and eyes. Her lips a cupid-bow shape, dainty and pretty.

Picturesque and willowy, her crimson hair cascaded down to her shoulder-blades, astonishingly contrasting against her black dress. And it wasn’t an ordinary dress. To Sallie’s amazement, it was an elaborate gothic gown, highly detailed with a silken frock and ribbon ties forming a seductive corset, one that hugged around her hips and slim waist, her ivory pale skin soft and warm to the touch. She glowed with a magnificence that Sallie had only seen on TV. Something almost fictional.

_Bloody hell, it’s like she’s a celebrity…_

And that’s how Sallie felt. It was as if she was blessed by a presence of a beautiful Hollywood star. In comparison to Sallie, she was very slim. Not terribly skinny to the point it was sickening, like Sam, but she looked _amazing_.

Even Sallie caught Corey being hypnotised with her appearance. But it made sense suddenly, because-

“Hey,” The woman giggled, smiling at Corey with an affection no stranger would give off in Iowa, and Sallie felt a stab of pain in her throat.

_Pain? This wasn’t pain, this…_

Sallie watched as the woman walked through the building, uncomprehendingly, her thoughts halting and unexpectedly perplexed in what she was feeling. It was familiar yet a stranger. Something so pointless, so pathetic…

The woman blanked Sallie, approaching to Corey as he paused the CD player and walked around the counter, passing Sallie as if he had completely forgotten about her existence, and immediately was right up to the woman and-

Sallie felt her heart squeeze in fear.

They embraced and shared a long, messy make-out, their breathing intense and loud, no shame in the noises of love they were making despite having a small audience watching.

Sallie had to look away, wincing. She felt riddled with sick and-

_Fuck…_

Deciding to leave the scene, Sallie walked through and into the staff room, grabbing the same cup she washed yesterday and began to fill it with water, erratically. The water spewed from the lip of the cup, running down her knuckles and fingers, numbing them, and she took a frantic gulp of water, her eyes hot at the grubby small decorative tiles by the kitchen sink. From behind the staff room, she heard their conversation, and pretended that she couldn’t hear them.

“Who’s the new girl?” The woman whispered.

“She’s the newbie.” Corey replied in a small voice, between desperate kisses. Sallie waited for him to introduce her to the new face. He didn’t. The woman muttered something, even softer now that Sallie had to strain her ear but couldn’t make out what was being said. But she knew, for a fact, that they were still talking about her. “She’s cool.” Came Corey’s simple reply. But that gave little to no relief to Sallie, for she was still battling with this sensation she was feeling. And chugging water as if it was going out of fashion wasn’t helping much.

After spending a moment in the staffroom, Sallie washed her cup and began to slowly walk back towards the shop floor, but she remained by the doorframe, her safe house from this stranger. The woman caught Sallie looking, and Sallie forced a smile to show she wasn’t being hostile.

“What’s it like taking my place, hun?” The woman asked suddenly, her eyes fixing onto Sallie. Sallie hesitated for a moment, sensing antagonism in her voice. Giving Corey a pleading glance, Corey spoke up.

“This is Jodie. She…used to work here.” And that, Sallie nodded, understanding. So, this was the ex-employee that Sallie replaced. And seeing the interaction between Jodie and Corey, Sallie had sensed the _true_ reason why Jodie was fired.

“I’m Sallie.” Sallie greeted faintly, but Jodie had ignored Sallie, entwined her arms around Corey’s neck, and whispered something in his ear. It was evident that Jodie was aware that Sallie was watching, and the hugs and giggles were a show put on for Sallie’s benefit. They all had a vibe of warning, threatening her off. And Sallie couldn’t help but study the pair of them. The way Corey’s arms were around her waist, his lean hands clasping onto her ass-cheeks, perky and perfect in her slimming dress. That closeness with another human being, how Sallie craved for it.

_But only the fucking beautiful ones get it…_

“So…no fun in the staff room then?” Jodie traced a pattern on Corey’s chest with her long, decorative nail, and for a minute or two Corey had trouble collecting his thoughts. “Or are you okay with an audience?”

Smugness radiated from Jodie like heat waves, and Sallie could feel a fresh emotion stirring in her. A fresh hatred she hadn’t felt before.

And to her grief, Sallie figured out what was wrong with her. Sallie felt a pang of envy. Something about this fairytale-incarnate woman touching her supervisor made her envious, and she hated it, feeling a sickness brewing in her stomach.

And her skull…

Corey chuckled dirtily, dotting a kiss along Jodie’s jaw hungrily, his hand running up the length of her thigh before glancing at Sallie over his shoulder.

“You mind if we…” He cleared his throat, grinning lewdly. “If _I_ showed a customer how to use dildos?”

“Actually, I do.”

Corey’s grin dropped instantly when he heard the reply. From what he’s seen from Sallie, he had expected her to recoil and just let him have his way, but that blunt reply…he certainly wasn’t expecting it, and the shock was evident in his face.

He stared hard at Sallie, his expression silently grilling at her for shaming him in front of his girlfriend. Sallie leaned against the doorframe, staring back at him, her face abruptly very…very dark. Sallie felt the throbbing of her heart pounding in her skull, almost excruciatingly. She feared in pissing off her boss, but something about this newfound hate gave her some sort of strength that she never thought she’d have, and now she was standing against something that she disagreed with for the first time in her life.

Sallie stared back at Corey, icily.

He hadn’t seen such an intense glare from the little woman before. Jodie scoffed, and Corey tried again, his voice a little firmer.

“C’mon, Sal. I don’t get to see this sexy thing a lot.” He cooed, trying to sweet-talk his way, and felt his own stomach dipping when Sallie’s expression shifted…

It twisted in disgust now, something was about to explode, and he didn’t know what to expect. “Just let me fuck my girlfriend.”

“No.”

Fear fluttered in her stomach, but she was already steamrolling.

Sallie felt her throat close off painfully when Corey released Jodie, who was brushing her red hair behind her ear and watched the pair of them in amusement. Corey stormed towards Sallie, bringing an unforgiving thunder that promised Sallie hell.

And she was waiting for it. She was waiting for a slap.

Now, Corey stood before her, looming over her in a threatening pose, shoulders tightened, arms fixated, and fists clenched. The world suddenly shrunk, everything seemed to have blacked out, and only Sallie and Corey existed.

Corey was gritting his teeth, his eyes intensely sharp, stabbing at her as she reflected the hatred back.

The adrenaline was coming back to Sallie now, and she felt no fear, only her raw hatred to the world, eliminating everything else. She felt invincible, and her mind was running on autopilot.

“Sallie…” Corey hissed now in a low, chilling voice, his eyes never leaving her. She hated the way he looked at her.

“Don’t fucking stare at me…” She found herself murmuring, repeating the same complaint Corey spoke to her on the first day. Corey shifted slightly, his upper lip twitching. “I _hate_ people staring at me…” She added slowly, each word slowly rolled off her tongue, bitter.

“Let me in-”

As if sensing his demand, Sallie held her arms up and grabbed the doorframe, blocking his way to the staffroom.

“That would be very unprofessional, supervisor…”

Sallie felt Corey snarl against her face, his chest heaving in exasperation. But then a thought occurred to him, and he forced a cold smirk.

“Fine, we’ll just fuck on the shop floor.” And with that, he turned away, approaching Jodie and scooping his arm around her, grabbing her chin and kissed her furiously. Her pretty arms wrapped around his chest and gripped onto the back of his shirt, like they were in the middle of making love.

Sallie felt a tangle of relief when Corey walked away from her, but an instinctive thought came to her, and without much power she spoke up again:

“Do it, and I’ll call Emma.”

Corey and Jodie seized, and with a high, loud laugh, Jodie reacted first.

“Don’t bother. She’s never fucking here, anyway!”

Corey smirked at his girlfriend’s remark, but Sallie was ready.

“So? I have her number.”

And Jodie stopped giggling.

“How-?”

“She gave it to me on my interview. She told me if anything were to be an issue, I can call her.”

Corey studied Sallie for a moment, watching and searching for any deceit and to his horror he found none. Sallie was serious.

“Why are you fucking ruining this for me, Sal?” Corey growled, his handsome features tightening in frustration. “Or are you scared in seeing some _real_ shit, virgin?”

Jodie snorted, and Sallie felt something chip away at her temper, becoming thinner, hotter, _sharper_.

“If you want to fuck, fucking go home.” Sallie’s voice was menacingly low, a terrible warning to Corey that she was close in losing her temperament. Her eyes were hard and shallow. “I didn’t come to work to fucking see _this_.” She shot a hot glare at Jodie, indicating her sudden approach and treatment towards her.

Corey opened his mouth, and Jodie pulled away from his arms, dismissing the pair of them.

“Fuck this.” And she began to storm towards the door.

“Baby, wait-” Corey whined, following her quickly. Sallie watched in distaste, seeing how such an intimidating man followed a beautiful woman like a begging, horny dog, suddenly losing all power and was now pleading for Jodie to stay. Jodie snatched her hand away from him when he tried to grab it, and she left the store.

Corey followed her, and Sallie was alone in the shop. Despite the tall walls, she could hear them, their argument muffled, but the tone was aggressive and irritated. When she had a moment of peace, her body dropped onto the floor, her legs weak and shaking uncontrollably, the world resuming back. Sallie’s entire body seized, becoming icily cold, and the fury and bravery she revealed was short-lived, and was now gone. Her skin prickled with Goosebumps, and she hugged herself tightly, trying to warm herself up from that terror.

The argument got severe outside, with Jodie and Corey now engaged in a screaming match. Sallie bit her lip. While she felt a little satisfied in winning her battle, it was just one battle in a bigger war.

And she was waiting for the war to come to her, her eyes anxiously glancing at the door. Corey was still outside. Soon, he would come in again and she would be forced to face his wrath. Several deep breaths, all shuddering and fragile, she tried to calm herself down, dizzily. Gradually, she stood up, approaching the counter and held herself there, her eyes dropping to her boots.

That was when the argument suddenly seized, and the door swung open, slamming against the wall. Swallowing hard, Sallie looked up, and standing in the doorway was Corey.

Her heart stopped.

The man stood there with a terrible aura of threat, his eyes sharp and destructive. Those gorgeous dreadlocks hung over his eyes, which honed onto Sallie in threat, giving Sallie a thought of a psychotic serial killer finding his last target, an unspoken fury that told Sallie she was in trouble, something she should have never challenged. His lips peeled back in a snarl, looking like a wild beast about to kill its prey. A predator giving her one last warning look.

And that was it.

It was a miracle that Sallie had enough time to scream when Corey began to run towards her-


	5. Fatal Attraction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains a small sex-scene.  
> \+ Masturbation (Fingering)  
> +Lewd Thoughts

# 

** **

-Corey lunged over the counter, his arms outstretched and reached over, his torso leaning over the counter.

Sallie screamed, throwing herself back against the wall, the supervisor’s hands and grippy fingers narrowly missing her, barely able to reach for her. An inch or two and he would have been able to grab her shirt.

He shuffled harder, reaching closer as he began to crawl over the counter, one leg propped up over the top. His eyes held an eagerness of succeeding, a terrible wrath that seized Sallie’s heart. Sallie forced herself onto the ground, crouching and ducking, her arms held before her face, trying to avoid Corey’s raking hands, which swiped and snatched in the air. She felt the wind passing her face as his hand scrambled at her. His dreadlocks swayed aggressively, spinning as his head frantically moved, a predatorial glint in his eyes.

“I’ll fucking _kill_ you!” He finally bellowed, injecting ice through Sallie’s veins. When he found it to be futile, he heaved, lurching back from the counter and suddenly ran around the counter, to the narrow entrance to behind the counter. Another scream left Sallie’s throat, her eyes huge and hot with the stinging of terrified tears. Instinctively, she leapt up, throwing herself over the counter at the far side, avoiding her furious supervisor like the plague and rolled off it, barely escaping him-

Corey snatched at the end of her black pants, his fingers grasping onto the fabric, his other hand snatching onto his ankle and yanked back, pulling her back to him. A fearful squeal reeked out of Sallie again, her pupils dinted as she turned back and saw Corey leering menacingly at her, the face of a killer achieving in catching his prey. Her mind was spinning, thoughts not making sense to her. And just as she got closer to him, she lifted her other foot and booted it into the pit of his stomach, winding the man. Corey choked, his eyes flew open in mute-shock, feeling the air leave his lungs and coughed horrendously, hacking his lungs as saliva flicked out of his gaping mouth, his stunned fingers numbed and released her.

Sallie made her great escape then, scrambling off the counter and finally had some form of protection between the two. The first thought she had was leaving the store immediately, but where would she run to? She couldn’t leave her belongings to a psycho like-

Her stalling damaged her timing, and Corey had already returned to her, cornering her, his arms opened and wide. His eyes bled with a murderous glare. While he was a little taller than she was, he was bigger than her regardless, his built broader and possibly stronger than her, and so she knew she would have difficulty if he caught her…

“I’m gonna fucking hurt you!” He promised outrageously, his teeth baring, glistening in the bright lighting around them. Sallie whimpered, her expression a painting of realization that she had antagonized a great enemy, and now she was going to suffer the consequences. Sallie weakened, staggering left, then right, her boots stiffening and stuck, indecisive in where to go. There was plenty of room to manoeuvre around, but Corey was swift, and she was certain that she could not make any mistakes should she escape.

The staffroom was a dead-end too, with no real source of shelter there.

Finally, her eyes moved to the left, and Corey grinned cruelly to see where she was deciding to go. She darted to the left, and with a bellow, Corey lunged towards her, his arms wide and ready to snatch her up.

Sallie squealed in distress, like an animal caught in a beartrap as Corey snatched at her little body, and she tried to scramble out of his vice grip, their feet tangling, her boots stomping on his dirty sneakers as she thrashed to escape, animal fear shrieking from her cries. They scrambled together, a tango of a distraught hunt, a snake capturing a tiny mouse, and it kept screaming, squeaking until its last breath. Corey’s hand snatched at Sallie’s throat, her slender throat easy for his fingers to seize around, his nails digging viciously into her flesh, his fingers holding.

His hand felt hot.

Sallie gagged against the sudden closure of her throat, tears brimming at her lashes as she instinctively reached for his wrist and tried to pry him off. The struggle between the two staff-members got violent, her screams choked and his breathing heavy, hot against her face, his eyes intent in ending this little life before him. She stumbled back, knocking into one of the pretty mannequins, and it collapsed, causing to be an obstruction to both Corey and Sallie, and in their fight, their feet struggled to support their battling bodies, and lost their footing.

Both fell onto the floor awkwardly, a pain striking through Sallie’s upper back as she fell onto the mannequin leg, its artificial knee stabbing into the centre of her back and she croaked a howl of agony. Corey landed next to her, on his side, his hand still holding onto her throat, and without moving his hand, he staggered onto his knees, now bending over her, their legs tangled, his knee pushed hard into her groin, almost crushing her with his own body.

She was so tiny, so cute beneath him with that darkened flushed face, those tearful eyes, the look of absolute surrender under him. Her eyes slowly rolled back, the inkling of life leaving her, and just when Corey was beginning to feel a desperate burning in his lower stomach, a ripple of excitement, he suddenly shouted when Sallie stabbed two fingers into his eyes, temporarily blinding him, and he released her throat. He threw himself onto the floor, grasping onto his face, snarling. “You little _bitch!_ ”

Sallie crawled away, grasping onto her throat and coughed constantly, gasping for air as her deprived body eagerly swept it up, starved from oxygen. On her hands and knees, Sallie tried to compose herself, getting away from Corey, the world spinning and she slumped onto the floor, coughing harshly, her throat burning.

A hand snatched at her ponytail, grasping the hair in a terrible clump, and hauled her back. Another unearthly scream riled out of her mouth, feeling her small body giving into the assault and as she was thrown onto her front, Corey stomped his foot onto her back, leaning down, applying more pressure onto his foot, and she whined weakly.

“Give me one fucking reason to let you fucking live to see the next day!” He snapped, pulling her hair back, tilting her head. He then traced a fingernail along her throat, excruciatingly slow. “I can slit your throat and kill you _quick!_ ”

Sallie whimpered meekly, shutting her eyes tightly, tears now rolling down her cheeks and dripping onto the floor. Her blood was cold yet on fire, her heart numbed her skull, yet she could feel it breathlessly panicking inside of her throat.

Corey waited for the pathetic babbling, the sorrowful pleads and apologises to fall out of her mouth frantically. And yet…

“ _Well?_ Give me a _fucking_ reason!” He roared, his breath hot and stung her eyes, the stench of musky cigarettes hitting the back of her nostrils and throat, his temper peaking. He was previously aroused with Jodie’s advances on him before, and now his arousal was doused coldly, he was left more frustrated than ever.

Sallie’s eyes vaguely opened, shaking as if she was in great pain and looked up at her supervisor, who had her pinned on the floor, her back arched forcefully, and held by the scruff of her hair. Hot tears ran down her face in thick ribbons, glistening in the light.

“You fucking _scared_ so much you’ve become mute?!” Corey spat in disgust, finding her silent treatment most irritating.

“I…”

Corey leaned down, his head beside hers now.

“I don’t…have a reason…”

The dreadlocked man had to take a moment to register what she meant. Those words hit him hard, words that he too had said before, while he cried and squirmed and was in agony. Only this time, there was no blood. No blades…no self-harming or alcohol…

The words trembled, sounding so fragile in the piercing silence, and it echoed inside of his skull. The emotion and genuine tone to it told him that she was being serious. And that shook him.

Slowly, he pulled back, and released her hair. Sallie dropped onto her front like dead-weight, her face bashed onto the flat carpet and her eyes stared. Registering that her terrifying enraged supervisor actually let her live…

She heard Corey stand over her, and she braced the moment he stomped down onto her small back, hoping she’d snap her ribcage. He didn’t, to her shallow disappointment.

“Get your shit.” He ordered softly, the edge of his voice still remained, but he was retreating back now, turning his back to her. “You can finish early.”

Sallie blinked, eventually pulling herself off the floor and felt the awful aches of her muscles and bones, her head throbbing and crackled with agony. Rubbing her throat, she slowly looked at Corey, who didn’t dare look back at her. He stood still beside the counter, facing the CD player. Arms folded, and he didn’t move.

He seemed to have read her thoughts, because he added: “I need to be alone. Go home…”

“I…don’t want to go home.”

“I don’t fucking _care!_ ” He bellowed, his voice reaching the ceiling and snapped through her, igniting another feral fear for this man. “Just go _fucking home!_ ”

Abruptly, Sallie scrambled off the floor, hurrying off to the staffroom, crying and shaking as she snatched her bag and stood up, looking at Corey. She caught a glimpse of his stunning eyes. He looked sullen, so livid, and almost instantly he shouted at the top of his voice: “ _DON’T LOOK AT ME!_ ”

Sallie squeaked in response, clutching onto her bag and running out of the staffroom now, rushing for the door. And as she left the room, she heard Corey swiping at the CD Player with an infuriated roar and threw the CD Player across the room.

That bellow stayed with her all day after that, and it haunted, and bounced inside of her skull…

She couldn’t bear the thought of being on a bus with other people.

So, she walked home.

* * *

By the time she returned home, she was blessed to an empty house. Her father was possibly still at work, and Sam was probably at one of those stupid gym sessions, possibly talking about how super-foods can give one the power to ruin people and be forgiven, all while how lemons can give babies cancer…

It was like a pathetic religious cult to let the sheep follow and be changed by some control-freak.

Despite having the house to herself, she knew what needed to be done. To tend to a few things just in a pathetic attempt of mending her soul and mind after the affairs of today. She ate some pieces of ham from the fridge, for most of the food within its cold walls were pre-prepped meal plans for _special Princess_ Sam, or food solely for the dinners Sam and her father had together. Everything except for the milk and water were off-limits to Sallie.

She had thought about buying microwave meals for herself but…

Nibbling on a few pieces of ham, knowing it wouldn’t be missed, she closed the fridge door, prepared a coffee and locked herself up in her bedroom again. It was early, but after the terrors and events of today, her body was mentally, and physically, exhausted. The peace and empty atmosphere were the best thing she needed right now, neglected from society, _away_ from people.

_I’m not going to work tomorrow. Fuck that…_

She was so petrified, unable to think of seeing Corey face-to-face again. Not after that, he wouldn’t forgive her. That pure, raw hatred and anger Corey shot at her, how he leered at her like a vicious target, she felt the same, indescribable sensation as she would have if he had held a pistol to her temples.

Numb, terrified, and just submissive-

That was something she found herself doing she assumed she would never do to a bully like him. _Submit_. To give into someone so easily. But it wasn’t as if she was just giving in to let Corey kill her…

She was _terrified_ of dying…

And she gave into Corey because her body went _limp_.

The sensation of him being over her, how he dominated and held her and controlled her movements. The low threat of him finishing her, but then he didn’t… While his actions were severely aggressive and in for the kill, he didn’t in the end. This attention, despite negative, weirdly excited Sallie. For the first time, a man held her so close, his aggressive actions exciting her body and mind. She _liked_ it…

_But it’s toxic as fuck…_

It felt disgusting and wrong, but she found her body shiver with excitement whenever she thought back about it, lean hot hands holding onto her so possessively, manly, that scent of his natural musk running through her mind like an intoxicating drug…

Her body seemed to remember that the most vivid. Blanking out _why_ it happened, and enjoying the fact it _did_ happen.

Suddenly, she sat up and snatched at her towel, prepping a quick shower to wash off the stench of Corey’s breath off her clothes, the sweat and distress staining the fabrics of her clothes…though she didn’t mind it so much, that hawk Sam would probably notice it straight away, and like a crime scene, Sallie needed to erase all evidence of the unusual on her.

When she got to the bathroom, her eyes caught on a red streak, and Sallie slowly looked, her brows furrowing sadly to find that her nose had been bleeding, for a while now, as it was dried and crusty against her upper-lip.

Good thing they weren’t in then…another interrogation would have immediately started.

Running a hand over her face, she sniffed and locked the door.

* * *

The room was steamy, humid and warm. Despite this, her body still felt painfully cold, the horror of the incident still trying to filter out of her body, the white-cold shock still traumatizing her legs. They were still hesitant, as if expecting another attack-

Unconsciously, she looked at the small window, frosted and high up from peering eyes, and she had almost expected Corey to be there, trying to climb through, forcing his way inside the room and snatching onto her now naked body…

Sallie was standing in the centre of the bathroom indifferently, the shower hissing as hot water sprayed from it, hitting the base of the bathtub, waiting for her. But Sallie was just biding her time, for when she removed her panties, she found that it was incredibly damp, a thick substance of her wet arousal sitting at the bottom of her black panties. And when she ran her hand over and cupped her pussy, she felt it being reawakened by such a simple touch. She wasn’t even trying to be dirty; she was merely checking herself, her pubic hair somewhat prickly. She hadn’t bothered to shave herself as often as she used to. Never having the energy or mental strength to even bother reciting her old self-care ways. But, maybe…

Her cold dark eyes stared down at her hand, which cupped against her pussy, looking past down her breasts and she squeezed it. It was still sensitive, swollen from before, and she frowned. She had been turned on by Corey’s assault, and while it was a disgraceful and horrible thing to go through, she felt the need to experience it again, the sheer thought of being chased by someone like _him_ , an insanely handsome and strong man. She knew exactly what was happening with her body and mind. It was deprived from male attention, and that was the closest thing she had ever had in a man touching her.

Her index finger brushed past her clitoris by accident and she winced harshly, the shock of the sensitivity thundering through her.

But it felt so-

“Shit…” She whispered under her breath; her voice drowned in the shower. And when she felt her finger push slightly past her plump pussy lips, her eyes eased, softening as a lewd glint came to them.

She hadn’t masturbated in a long time. Several months now, in fact. She never cared for it, completely turned off with the idea of even touching herself, as if it disgusted her. But now, she felt no guilt in it, no chains holding her back. She was alone, and now that she was vaguely aware that she was aroused, she wanted to take this chance while she could.

When was it going to be the next time her body _actually_ did some good to her and wanted to please her?

Carefully, she stepped into the bathtub, standing beneath the spotlight of hot water, feeling it hitting her muscles rather firmly. She felt the bruises from her throat and hips, aches blossoming from those points as she touched it, but the hot water was soothing her. Her head bowed, looking down at her body, watching water drench her cold flesh. Running her hands up, she massaged against the aching muscles, her hand cupping her breasts and washed it for a moment.

Then she slowly began to grope it. Touching her own breasts never really did anything to her. It wasn’t her most arousing point from what she learnt. But it was always nice just to try and feel _normal_. All women were aroused when they groped their breasts and pinched at their nipples.

She pinched at her own, softly, and pulled at it. She frowned in disappointment. Again, nothing. It felt like she was trying to tickle herself. It wasn’t effective.

So, she decided to focus on the main attraction, her hand returning to her pussy and cupped it tenderly, her middle finger pushing all the way inside of her, snug inside between her inner-walls, feeling the unusual texture around her finger, and she could understand how men got pleasure from feeling this hugging their dicks. With her palm pushed against her clitoris, she slowly circled her middle finger inside of her, her worn knuckle pushed against the outer lips and she stared at the corner of the bathtub, just trying to _feel_. Her body was aroused, and she felt it heating up slightly, but it felt like a half-assed job, felt as though she just did it for the sake of a release, not for the journey of pleasing oneself.

Pressing her cheek against the cold, tiled wall, she pondered as she tried to get into the mood, feeling almost inclined in just stopping and falling asleep.

But when the image of Corey looming behind her came to her mind, his hand holding her throat, her body remembered how he felt on her. While it was only drowned by the utter fear she experienced then, she remembered how hot she felt, how _wet_ she got between her legs, and it confused her for a time.

Sallie’s attraction to Corey made no sense. Sallie was fully aware of this. Maybe attraction _never_ made sense, it had happened to her before, seeing a guy and feeling something click inside her. And Corey _was_ handsome but a fucking enigma. She looked at him and for a moment she didn’t felt the urge to punch his face. He didn’t have a punch-able face. She wanted to grab his face and kiss him, so frantically, to bury her tongue inside of his hot, wet mouth, to make those disgustingly _sexy_ noises with him, to touch his naked flesh and feel her own body spike up in lewd excitement. That natural feral connection of two naked bodies touching and holding together. Just that intimacy with another human…

_I wonder what he is like to fuck…_

That very thought triggered an edge of something to her consciousness, and Sallie grunted quietly as she stuffed her index finger inside of her suddenly, stretching herself open slightly as both fingers were pushed inside of her pussy. Finally, she straightened, her mind pulling her back into that dark void she hasn’t visited in a long time. To half-blank the world in order to enjoy herself, to get into that mood, the only mind-frame she could ever get.

She had stared at images and GIFs, almost too frightened to look at pornography herself, but it was enough to get her off. Right now, she was focusing on her imagination, and she had to ease her mind more in order to allow her body to warm up to this. She had done it before in bed, several times, but she was aware where people where, and that they were sleeping. She was alone but always had that subconscious shard of _What if they walk in now?_

And despite the door being locked, hearing that bitch’s voice would just ruin all of her hard work.

Sallie shut her eyes…

…and Corey was suddenly pulling at her hair, yanking it back and holding her against his body. He was naked too.

_‘I’ll make you sorry…’_

Sallie’s body leaned against the cold tiles as Corey shoved her there, her breasts squashed against the wall, shower drizzling over the pair of them. The shocking contrast of hot water and cold tiles confused her body, adrenaline running, sharpening all of her senses.

“Corey…” She merely whispered, so silently, but Corey heard her.

_‘You’re fucking mine…’_

With a hand on her throat, he held it, a firm squeeze but nothing terribly threatening. He was just holding her in place, his other hand released her hair and curved around her back, inching around her chest, just beneath her breasts. They balled up against his forearm, heavy swollen orbs, her nipples perky and ready.

A dreadlock brushed against her ear as he leaned down to it and snarled through clenched teeth.

_‘I’m going to fuck you…make you cum all over my cock.’_

A jolt of sublime eagerness thrilled inside of her, her pores sweating in anticipation as she felt his cock rest against the curve of her ass-cheeks, slowly rubbing, teasing, she was feeling his flesh peel back slightly as he thrusted deliberately. The warning of him brutally fucking her was there now, and Sallie’s thighs clenched, her heart lifting inside of her throat, pounding.

“Mmm…” She whimpered, her teeth chattering.

 _‘Now, repeat after me…’_ His lips pressed onto her ear. _‘You are mine.’_

“I…am yours…”

_‘You are my little sex-doll…’_

“I am your little sex-doll…”

_‘And I can do whatever I want with you…’_

“You…c-can do whatever you want with me…” Like an obedient little pet, she repeated his sharp rules, and she felt him smirking in his voice.

‘ _Good girl…’_ He began to run a tongue against her neck, his lips soon pressing there for a time, and nipped.

The little woman winced.

Corey moved slightly behind her, his body still pressing against her, burning hot, and she felt his cock move down past her ass-cheeks, and slid between her thighs. They tightened, and Corey emitted a deep, sultry groan, feeling the flesh of the woman holding him. _‘You’re so good to me, Sal…’_

The tip pushed inside of her pussy, feeling the thick hot cock slowly ramming through, burrowing deeper and deeper, and she squeaked mutely, opening her legs wider for him, feeling his cock stuffing inside of her, pressing against her lower stomach. He chuckled darkly, pleased with this service.

That was when his hand loosened, running down her chest and groped her breast, holding the soft breast in his hand and squeezed, flicking his thumb over her erect nipple.

 _‘Oh fuck…’_ He breathed huskily, pressing his face next to hers. _‘Sal…you’re such an amazing woman. You’re so brave and strong.’_ Eagerly, he was kissing her cheeks, tracing it all along her jawline and neck, finding her collarbone and grazed his teeth onto them. _‘You deserve all of the love. You’re beautiful, and I cannot believe you are mine…’_

Selfish lies to herself. But she wanted to have that moment. Her lower stomach clenched hard, warning her that-

Corey grinned lewdly.

 _‘You’re gonna cum for me, aren’t you?’_ And against her ears, he whispered: _‘Cum for me…’_

…Sallie’s eyes flew open, and squinting quickly as she felt a breathless lift inside of her chest, her inner walls clenching hard around her fingers as she stabbed inside of her pussy, simulating a penetrating cock, and her clitoris was burning, painfully sensitive, her other hand madly rubbing against it, enflaming the orgasm that was erupting inside.

She struggled to breathe, gasping as she threw herself against the wall and hunched, spreading her legs open as wide as she could and her jaw hung open, a silent orgasmic cry for her supervisor left her as she came hard. Her leg shook and began to struggle to hold her up, weakening so suddenly.

The orgasm lasted longer than she expected, and just as she was calming down, she immediately felt her hand and wrist cramping, and she pulled her hand out of her pussy, panting dryly, her mind a hot blur of arousal and pleasure, drunk-like, and she moaned lovingly, leaning against the tiles and had only wished Corey was there ready to catch her in his arms, that promise of cuddling together and not sleeping alone _always_ there.

But that was all a fantasy.

And while the orgasm was brilliantly intense, her joy was short-lived, and slowly sank onto the bottom of the bathtub, bitterly reminded that she will most likely never see him again.

It didn’t fucking matter anyway.

He was taken.


	6. Losing It All

# 

** **

“Why are you still here?”

Sallie numbly ignored that voice, focusing on pouring her cereal into the bowl.

_Fucking coco pops, again…sick of this shit._

For once, she woke up feeling hungry for food, and decided to take it upon herself to feed her body.

Knowing that her absence would have angered Corey, she turned her phone off, refusing to allow him to get a chance to call her, to grille at why she wasn’t at work. She wished she was overlooked now, just to disappear from this world, to vanish without a trace.

Just to be forgotten.

And turning her phone off, her only connection with Corey and that damn sex store, was the best way for it. Now, she was just trying to retreat into the darkness and die there in silence.

Her father was at work, and _Satan…_

Sam was suddenly beside Sallie, leaning on the counter, trying to intimidate the small woman into responding to her.

“Oi, I was talking to you.” She sneered, unimpressed by the blank reaction she achieved from her husband’s wretched daughter.

“Yeah, I heard you.”

“So why are you here? Or did you get fired already?” A cruel smirk lined her words, almost too confident in knowing the answer. But, thankfully, Sallie had prepared herself for these gruelling, emotionally torturing interviews.

“It’s a day off.” She lied fluidly, turning around to get the milk from the fridge. But Sam stood in her way. She was far from done.

Sam hated the way her husband’s daughter looked. She despised the repulsive darkness that remained in her eyes. She never posed her hair in any other hairstyle, a dull dark brown with no shine of life. Black clothes, she fucking _hated_ black. Every day she sees Sallie wear no colour, and it was always as if she was attending a funeral. Sam was deeply embarrassed when she was at a family gathering, and Mr. Knight brought his daughter, who wore black, baggy pants, those stupid silvery chains that hung from her pants, and those dirty, _dirty_ boots.

_Was her mother that depressive too? Is that why she killed herself?_

Many conversations have occurred between Sam and her husband, questioning about her stepdaughter’s attitude and view on the world. Understandably, she’d be depressed after her mother died. But that was _years_ ago, surely, she would have gotten over it, forgotten about her. Death of a loved one wasn’t _that_ bad…she may not have experienced it herself personally, but she assumed it was easily mourned over. If done correctly, on her terms.

Sallie had been going downhill, and Sam was waiting for her to not even go outside, locking herself up in her room, away from everyone, to starve herself. A twisted bit of joy came to her at that thought. It was most amusing watching someone else suffer, allowing herself to outshine. She was the better woman for Mr. Knight.

She was waiting for that day to walk into Sallie’s room and find herself hanging off a belt in a makeshift noose. But Sam knew Sallie didn’t have the courage to commit such an act…

And she was right.

Sam eyed Sallie up and down.

“You look like you’re going out,” She observed in disgust, her pointed nose wrinkling. She noticed something slightly different. A black turtleneck jumper, black cover her throat. Unless she was very cold, Sallie was hiding something…

Saying nothing, knowing that it would only antagonise the situation, Sallie stepped around Sam to grab the fridge door, looking for the milk.

Skimmed milk. Sam’s milk, forbidden. Because apparently semi-skimmed milk was poison and not good enough for her precious, ‘unique’ body.

And to Sallie’s bitter luck, there was no semi-skimmed milk.

Reluctantly, she closed the fridge door, the urge of eating promptly dismissed, and her stomach gnawed at her insides in protest. It was starting to hurt now, and Sallie wanted to cry.

Yet she felt too bitter and disoriented to emote anything. “Where are you going?”

“Nowhere.”

_Anywhere but home._

“Or are you _hiding_ something?”

Sallie swallowed hard, the small line of words surprisingly frightening her. She forced a scoff.

“No.”

Sam suddenly approached Sallie from behind, grabbing the back of her neck and yanking her towards her. Instantly, Sallie slammed her prying hands off her. “Get off me!”

“Don’t you _dare_ touch me like that!” Sam barked, watching as Sallie pulled away from her, gathering space, pulling the collar up her neck frantically. “So, you _are_ hiding something!”

“I’m not. I’m fucking cold!” Partly the truth, a terrible lie.

“How are you cold? I’m not cold!”

This coming from the same person who insists on not putting a jacket and jumper inside the house but yet complain herself that it was too cold and would rather spend tons of money on having the heating on constantly, all night. Money that wasn’t _hers_. Her father had those wrathful bills, while Sam contributed to _nothing_.

Sallie shot a poisonous look at Sam’s ghastly comment, finding it ironic.

“Just fucking leave me alone!” Sallie snapped; her eyes dark with a bitter fury that had been bursting to come out. She always tried to hide her hatred for the woman when her father was around, and Sam seemed to have done the same, abusing and calling Sallie names when Mr. Knight wasn’t around.

That’s why it was always pointless in telling her father what his wife did to her. For her father listened to his wife’s fabricated side of the story, and instantly take her side of the argument without question, like a religious nutjob too ignorant in listening to the truth but would rather live in a lie. Because he _had_ to.

As Sallie began to take her immediate escape, she felt Sam honing down onto her, the skinny witch storming after Sallie.

“What are you hiding, Sallie Knight?!” She screamed, now insistent in finding out what was happening. Sallie hurried to the door, furiously unlocking it and swung the door open.

A scream left Sallie as a hand raked at her hair, snatching it and pulling her back, yanking her back inside the house. The door remained open, showing the world a slither of truth in what occurred in that household.

“Don’t you _fucking_ dare leave!” Sam shrilled, her pointed eyes stabbing at the little woman. “You little fucking bitch!” Every word she spoke was entangled with that disgusting accent, making her sound so scabby and rough. It was a disgusting drawl Sallie despised. While Sallie’s accent was a broad inflection, a mixed breed of British with an American twang, Sam was a full-blown filthy accent, a voice that was spoken in a dirty city, the rough end of the world, where mispronunciations was normal for that sort of dialect. And Sallie _fucking_ despised it. “Wait until I tell your father about this!”

Sam’s hand snatched at Sallie’s turtleneck, expecting to see the dirty act of two rowdy teenagers having sex behind a public toilet. So, Sam was surprised to find bruises there instead, and not from love-bites and rough sex, but-

“What’s this?!” She screeched in demand, seeing the bruises of fingers and a thumb. Someone tried to strangle her…which means… “You’ve been fucking! Dirty fucking whore!”

“I haven’t!” Sallie screamed back, her eyes huge in panic and loathing. Frantically, Sallie snatched herself out of Sam’s grip, pulling her hair and felt many strands being snapped off her skull, igniting pained tears stinging in her eyes.

“Explain yourself!” Sam commanded, her bony fingers snatching at Sallie’s forearm, nails biting into her flesh. And that was when Sallie vaguely lost herself for a moment. With a battle-scream, her eyes locked with Sam, and Sam barely had a moment to register what was about to happen. Sallie thrashed, _viciously_ , using her build to push the witch off her, knocking the skinny woman into the staircase. Her nails scratched down her arm, emitting pink lines of torn skin, and Sam was horrified to have been pushed. “You fucking assaulted me! I’m going to call the fucking police!” The merciless stepmother warned, her voice high-pitched and incensed as she scrambled back up. “No wonder your mother fucking _killed herself!_ ”

Sallie didn’t take anymore chances. She had already bolted through the door, turning off the path and ran down the grassy hill that was a bit behind the house, rushing into the small forestry area, and vanished, running into the city of Des Moines.

She was in agony.

* * *

Merle Hay Mall.

Despite her lie, Sallie hadn’t visited this mall in a long time. She never had an excuse to go visit stores with the intention of window-shopping and buying. She never had the money for anything…

But right now, she needed to be away from home, and a place to be left alone.

Sallie looked at the glorious building at the other side of the road, standing by a set of traffic lights, waiting for them to respond and give her a safe path to cross from the busy traffic.

Sallie’s dull eyes watched the multiple cars thundering past her, down the road, at a frightening, legal speed. And in her head, she saw herself walking across it unsafely, just a wandering target for speeding drivers, imagining the devastating impact of her small body being broken by the hood of a car, at a terrible force, and hopefully completely killing her in that one shot.

To end this suffering, to end this life, and just to come back to her mother-

The traffic lights responded at last, bleeping as a green man illuminated beside her, and the cars had stopped. Sighing deeply, she walked towards the Mall, wondering what to do.

She had no intention in shopping. Just to walk around, just to keep her busy.

Though, right now, after that incident, she was now considering just walking, walking…walking…walking…just walking without stopping, until she dropped dead…

The Mall was warm. Warmer than the chilled breeze outside, and it wasn’t until she walked in through the automatic doors that she felt her flesh prickle in relief. It was almost welcoming.

Sallie immediately walked past the Mall Directory, having no objective in going anywhere. She was just going to idle. Now, it wasn’t as busy as it would be in the weekends, typically due to many residents of Des Moines being at work. Sallie would have been herself, but-

She pulled her phone out of her jean pocket and looked at the black screen. Something told her to turn it on, for her own safety, but she ignored it.

_What safety? I don’t even care anymore…_

Impassively, Sallie walked through the wide hallways, seeing the happy couples walking towards, holding hands, groups of children that evidently should be in school at this time gathering in flocks by the purple and gold plush sofas, laughing at whatever they were reading on their phones, and women walking so elegantly in their tight dresses, masses of paper shopping bags hanging from their arms.

Sallie pressed a hand to her other jean pocket, and to her let-down, she had left her purse behind. Not that it mattered, she had no intention in buying anything like clothes and books, but she had no food.

The food court sounded like a great idea…

But she didn’t dare return home. Not right now.

Depressingly, she carried on, her eyes glancing at the store from both sides as she walked. Most of them were clothes store, advertising pretty dresses for scrawny women, posters of fake beauty plastered on the make-up stalls, seeing flocks of young girls eyeing up the array of make-up and beauty sets.

_Why can’t you be normal like them?_

That bitter voice came back to Sallie again. Her self-hatred. The voice that always returned whenever she was alone.

She turned away, passing by a small fountain with artificial plants surrounding it.

There was a music store that intrigued her slightly, and there was a large poster on the window that spoke to her. A small bit of hope gave her the motivation to approach it, reading the poster.

It was a _Woodstock_ Festival poster, advertising many great metal bands to be joining and playing during an event, including _Metallica and Megadeth._

Sallie’s heart ached for that. It pained her that she could never afford anything like that, and even if she did, she had no one to go to them, and her father and Satanic stepmother wouldn’t even allow her.

_I wish I had my purse…could have seen if I could get another CD…_

Longingly, she eyed up the dates of the show, feeling more heartbroken, knowing that she would never attend such a thing. No one comes to Iowa, and she was trapped in the tower of this purgatory city.

Someone was staring at her from the corner of her eyes within the shop before her, and she took a moment to look before her heart sank, shockingly stunning her.

Corey was there.

He was inside the store, browsing at the rock and heavy album display cases, holding a _Slayer_ CD. The pair stared at one another for a long moment, registering what was happening. His dirty-blond dreadlocks sitting comfortable on his black hoodie jacket, tucked in a black beanie.

Sallie’s blood went cold. Her Supervisor was right there, staring at her so frostily, a silenced mute-fury on his attractive features and she knew exactly what he was thinking.

Sallie took a step back, like a deer caught in headlights-

Corey dropped the CD on the shelf and was already walking towards her.

With a panicked whimper, recalling what happened last time he approached her like that, Sallie immediately turned away and was running down the corridors, her boots booming on the cold, white tiles of the Mall. And to her fear, she heard someone running after her.

Fellow shoppers were staring at her, already judging and assuming she was running away from a crime she just committed. Most likely a young thief, and the taller man was security, running after her. No one dared interrupted.

Sallie ran as fast as she could, her knees trembling and seizing under the tremendous dread that ran through her.

_He’s gonna kill me. He’s gonna kill me. He’s gonna kill me. He’s gonna kill me. He’s gonna kill me. He’s gonna kill me._

“ _Get back here!”_ His voice rung through the mall, unforgettable, reaching her and making her shudder. Everywhere was throbbing, distressed and panicked, a convulsion she had never experienced before.

She did the foolish thing and looked back.

Corey was far behind her, but his staggering speed and longer legs was making him advance towards her much quicker. Panting, terrified, Sallie skidded around the corner, seeing the famous twin escalators that were pressed on both side of the main hall. She turned for the escalator that was ascending, and scrambled up them, practically falling onto all fours and ran.

The pair barged past shoppers, who cried out in horror or grumbled in disgust as the two of them rushed past them, shoving into whatever windows of escape they could find. When Sallie reached the top, she was on automatic drive, having no clue where she was heading. But she was just trying to escape. _Anywhere!_

Sallie hurried down another corridor, which was emptier than the lower floor, her back sweating, the hairs at the back of her neck standing on end, her eyes blurred as petrified tears came to her again. As she ran, she glanced at the large windows of the bustling stores, using their reflective surfaces as rear-view mirrors, to judge where Corey was-

She barely managed a whine.

Corey was a heartbeat away from her-

His hand snatched at her shoulder with a grunt, and the moment he touched her she panicked, frantically thrashing and stumbled, crashing onto the floor, pulling Corey down with her. Corey’s body landed on the little woman harshly, and she kept thrashing, slapping at his arms which quickly grappled at her wrists, and he held them together.

“Calm the fuck down!”

“Get off me!” Sallie shrieked, now crying. “Leave me alone!”

“Calm down!” Corey’s voice had an edge of anger, but somehow it was just emphasising the seriousness of his words. However, Sallie always assumed the worst in people. He wanted to-

“Please don’t hurt me!”

“I’m not-!” Corey stalled, and through her tears she watched as the dreadlocked man softened, his grip lessening and soon he released her. To his surprise, Sallie didn’t leave. She remained on the floor, trembling, her hands immediately covering her face and she wept against them.

Corey sat over her, straddling her small waist, locking her down so she couldn’t escape even if she wanted to. But he was enraptured by this scene before him. He didn’t fully understand what was even going on. Of course, he knew she was frightened of him. Everyone was. But this was deeper than just their little fight back in the shop.

“I’m not gonna hurt you…” He finally replied, his voice small. Even though she heard him, she remained still, shaking uncontrollably, like a little wounded rabbit.

“Just leave me alone to die…” Came the quiet comment, and Corey felt a cold stab in his chest. He blinked.

“What…” He shook his head. “I was gonna ask why the fuck you didn’t show up for work this morning, but…” Slowly, he got off her, kneeling beside her and leaned down. He wanted to comfort her, but he feared his touch would make her scream again, as if he burnt her.

“W-Why did you chase me? Again?!” Sallie sobbed, unable to look at him.

“Because you ran away from me.” Corey replied, a bit bluntly.

“But you wanted to kill me!”

Corey didn’t reply for a moment, his own darkened thoughts rolling in his skull.

_Even she thinks you’re dangerous…_

“I didn’t…mean to…” He barely said, his voice monotone.

Finally, the little woman pulled her hand away, peeking above her hands and looked at her supervisor, who was now regarding her with a strange coldness. It wasn’t cruel, it was more as if he was having difficulty showing sympathy, and he was _trying_ to look as less threatening as possible.

Corey studied her.

Such big, sad blue eyes…

“Aren’t…you supposed to be in work…?” Came the quiet meek voice. Corey’s lips tugged slightly in a cynical smile.

“I was gonna ask you the same thing.” His smile dropped. “It’s a half-day on Thursdays.”

Ah, she had forgotten about that. Emma mentioned it in her interview, but with everything going around in her head... “Hey, look…I also wanted to say sorry, for yesterday. I…” Corey sighed deeply, his eyes falling, trying to look for the words to make it not seem as bad as it was. But they both knew it was terrible.

“…you lost it.”

Corey looked back at her, who was wiping her eyes with the back of her hands, sniffing. Sallie sat up slowly, and they both stayed on the cold floor.

“Lost it?”

Sallie sniffed again, nodding.

“Like, you lost your temper. You lost the power to hold it in…”

Corey swallowed. Somehow that made a lot of sense to the supervisor.

“And you?”

Sallie shrugged, her eyes looking at her boots.

“I lost everything.”

There was a heavy silence between the two, both sitting on the floor as some shoppers left the store, looking at the pair but promptly ignoring them.

“You looked fucked.” Corey pointed out softly, and Sallie nodded in agreement. “You wanna talk about it?”

Sallie’s eyes lifted to Corey, a deep strong blue regarding him. She wondered about this for a moment, and seeing the hesitation, Corey changed the question. “Let’s get food.”

Finally, he stood up slowly, towering over Sallie. He would have held his hand out for her, but Sallie was already standing up, avoiding eye-contact from him. “C’mon,” Corey watched her, waiting, wondering if she would follow him.

And she did.


	7. Faith

# 

** **

By the time they reached the food court, Sallie had stopped crying. Though her eyes were red from the tears, she seemed to have calmed down.

Just frighteningly silent.

Nothing was said during the time they walked. Corey didn’t look back to make sure she hadn’t run away. Though he didn’t need to. She seemed just as lost as he was and had nowhere to go.

Once they got back to the food court, Corey found an empty small table, pulling the small plastic seat out and dropping onto the chair heavily. Sallie followed suit, pulling the chair away and sat at the opposite side of the square table, tucking her hands between her thighs, slouching forward, and stared down at the table. Her eyes fixated on the messy blue and white patterns.

Silence.

It was uncomfortable and tight.

Corey leaned back in his seat, his eyes also looking down at the table, uneasy tension between the two. He didn’t know what to say.

Another long pressing silence of no conversation.

Finally, Corey swallowed.

“You getting food?” He asked, his voice raspy and deep. Sallie blinked.

She wanted food, but-

She shook her head.

“I’m not hungry,” She lied, bitterly regretting leaving the house without her purse.

“Hmm.” Corey stood up. “I’ll be back.” And with that, he walked away, approaching the small corner café, _Jimmy’s_.

Sallie finally looked up once Corey gave enough distance, and she watched him approaching the counter, talking to the cashier and ordering food. She whined silently, wanting food so much. But she had already mentally prepared herself to starve the rest of the day. Maybe tomorrow she won’t wake up, her body crucified with lack of food.

Deeply, she pondered over what to do, and why Corey was with her. He could have easily dismissed her and left her behind like everyone, but she was confused more than anything.

Why did he invite her to the food court?

The smell of fries being soggy and drenched in vinegar made her mouth water, the harsh aches of hunger reaching up further in her body.

Soon, Corey returned with a tray, sitting before her.

“Fucking starving.” He announced, mirroring Sallie’s thoughts. He ordered the typical _All-American_ burger, with the vibrant colours of green lettuce, white onions and red tomatoes, a ¼ pound of burger meat stuffed happily between two buttered buns. Beside it was a hearty portion of freshly cooked fries.

Sallie stared sadly at the delicious sight, longing for it.

She watched as Corey’s lean hands grip onto the burger eagerly, noticing the torn skin and bloodied scarred knuckles as he grabbed it and lifted it to his mouth. Sallie’s eyes immediately dropped when he took a bite, almost unable to watch him. But hearing the crunch of the lettuce and onion, the noises of his mouth savouring the flavour.

She subtly licked her dry lips, wanting to cry.

Again, silence held the two, all while Corey ate his burger eagerly.

And Sallie was a fool. Throughout this whole time, Corey had been studying the smaller woman, watching her actions, her answers, and he was trying to understand her without even asking her.

It soon occurred to him that something had happened back home.

_A test._

“You want a fry?” He asked between gulps of food, his mouth stuffed with the burger meat and bready crumbs of the bun. Sallie weakly looked up, almost reluctant in answering him. Corey stared at her eyes. She was giving him the vibe that she was not hungry, but those damn eyes were practically begging. There, she sat looking like a homeless kitten, and that made his small, black heart tighten.

Sallie shook her head again, trying to proceed in being polite.

Corey pushed his tray portrait, so that the fries were facing her now, at arm’s reach, tempting her with their golden-fried potato goodness. Sallie swallowed hard again.

“I’m…f-fine…” She barely managed to say, her voice almost inaudible. Corey’s eyes narrowed.

“Just take a fucking fry, I won’t miss it.” He ordered, and the tone of voice made the submissive little woman obey. Shyly, she reached over, unable to avoid the temptation now. She took a single fry and lifted it to her lips. And Corey cautiously watched how she almost inhaled the fry without tasting it, turning away. She winced sadly when it hit her empty stomach.

Corey leaned back, placing his burger down.

“Don’t fuck with me, Sal.” He said sternly. “You’re fucking starving. I can see it.”

Sallie kept her eyes away, feeling as though if she looked at Corey, he’d find out the truth. He tried to figure her out more. Why would she be starving herself? She wasn’t those prettified, plastic bitches that refused to eat in order to avoid getting fat, and didn’t needed to lose weight, but-

“Go get food.”

“I…can’t…”

“Hmm?”

Sallie was still not looking at him, and in his mild agitation, he patted his hand on the table. “Oi, fucking look at me.” Obediently, Sallie’s eyes moved, looking at him. But she remained still, turned away, not fully facing him. “Why can’t you?”

“I’ve got no money…” There, she said it. Immediately, her eyes shifted away, knowing that the judgemental glare was going to hit her, and she couldn’t stand the idea of looking at it.

Corey sat there for a moment, completely leaving his food now, which was already scoffed entirely. It would be unacceptable to give it to her. He saw the way she stared at his food longingly, as if she had never had food before. That was the first thing Corey noticed.

Grumbling to himself, he stood up suddenly, and Sallie shook, shutting her eyes, waiting for the impact of another hit.

But Corey was walking away…

Slowly opening her eyes, she looked back and saw Corey by _Jimmy’s_ _Corner Café_ again.

_Why…?_

And when he turned back to her, approaching the table with another tray of the same freshly cooked food, she seemed almost intrigued with it. Then when he returned to her, he placed the tray before her, offering her the hot burger and fries. “Here. Fucking eat.”

He sat back down heavily, and Sallie looked at him with huge eyes, confused.

“Why…?”

“Just fucking eat.” Corey insisted, his voice holding an infuriated edge to his tone. “As your supervisor, you will do as I say.”

Sallie stared at him, sorrowfully, but there was a small twinkle of hope in her eyes.

“But…we’re not in work.”

Corey snorted.

“Fucking smartass.” Sitting comfortably in his chair now, he grabbed the remains of his burger, and began to scoff the rest of it, sauce and meat painting his fingers. Sallie scrutinised him for a time, and Corey left her alone. Soon enough, she will give in and-

He smirked against the burger bun when he saw her delicately grabbing the burger, her hands looking so small compared to the comically large burger, and he felt a shard of relief when he watched her lift it to her mouth and nibbled at it.

Promptly, Sallie began to eat more willingly, the taste of the food almost like an addiction, and Corey focused on his fries as the little woman fervently ate up her food, her tiny hands shaking in excitement and adrenaline, feeding energy into her body at last, filling a void that would have ended her sooner.

After a moment, Sallie shuddered, and began to cry.

Corey looked up suddenly.

“You okay?”

Sallie nodded, and Corey didn’t believe it. But then-

“T-Thank you…” She wept weakly; her small voice fragile as she ate at her fries frantically. “Thank you…”

Corey shifted uncomfortably.

“It’s fine. You-”

“I _mean_ it.” Sallie asserted, her voice gathering a small ounce of strength as tears ran down her cheeks. “I haven’t…eaten properly…in days…”

“Days?!” Corey piped up in horror. “Shit…” Sucking his fingertips clean, each coming out with a wet pop, he dried them onto his shirt and leaned back, folding his arms. “How come?”

“I just…” Sallie sniffed, finishing her burger, stuffing the last of a piece of lettuce that tried to escape her lips. “…haven’t. I couldn’t…”

“Don’t you eat at home?”

“I don’t…get fed…that often.”

Corey’s eyes widened in dread.

“Why?”

“My…stepmother is a cunt.” Sallie replied mutely, her shaky hands reaching for the fries and she shoved each one in her mouth continuously, impatiently eating.

A long, shuddering breath came out of Corey, his hands gripping onto his forearms tighter.

“Wanna talk to me about what’s going on?”

Swallowing the rest of her food, Sallie took a moment to calm down, the aching in her stomach finally gone, and for once, she felt at peace. Tears filled her eyes, the relief of satisfying her dying hunger almost too hard on her.

Corey _saved_ her…his act of kindness was enough to keep her alive for another day.

“It’s been really hard…” Sallie whimpered, shrinking in her seat now, her eyes still refusing to look at Corey. Corey said nothing, just letting her talk.

There, sat before him, was an emotionally wounded woman, a heartbroken human being that had been fucking destroyed by this world. Corey felt a strange primitive bond with her, and he was intrigued to find out what had happened to her to make her into this.

She loved heavy metal, and anyone who loved heavy metal was a good person in his book.

Slowly, Sallie spoke to Corey about her living situation, starting from what had happened today, reciting back to previous encounters with the witchy stepmother, and have him an overview about her past, right back to her mother’s death. And Corey listened intensely, his eyes imploring her to keep talking, and every time she composed herself, she would cry again. Corey never stopped her. He was so fascinated with all the distraught experiences this woman had, and he was feeling something for her.

 _Connection_.

His brows would furrow harshly at every terrible event, and when he questioned about what her father was doing, she simply shrugged and explained how an obsessed man that was too terrified in living alone becomes a drone for a queen-bitch.

It was a painful hour for the pair of them.

Corey leaned back.

“Huh, so not all stepmothers are sexy and wants to fuck their step-kids.” He implied that as a joke, sparking his history of his pornographic hobby, and Sallie shot him a blazing glare, making him raise his hands up in defence. “Shit, it’s okay!” He piped up in alarm. “It was a joke.” And Sallie calmed down.

“I just don’t get what my dad sees in her…” Sallie said sorrowfully, biting her lower lip. “I don’t fucking get it…she’s a horrible cunt that needs to die, but…” She closed her eyes. The tears had finally stopped, and she felt no need to cry again. A pleasant relief lifting her. She still felt awful, but she had cried and had food, so there was some relief inside of her now.

Her head was still a distressing mess. “My dad _knows_ what she had done to me…and how she treats me. He says he loves me to the bones but _why_ the fuck can he not fucking _protect_ me from her!” Sallie covered her eyes, shuddering. “She makes me want to die…”

“Don’t say that.” Corey hushed, reaching over and before he knew it, his hand was holding onto her forearm, his first and real interaction of comforting to the smaller woman. “You’ll only let her win…”

Sallie paused, and looked at Corey with an emotion that only spoke of realization.

“I…never thought of it that way…”

Corey smiled faintly.

“You surviving all of her shit says a lot about you.” He pulled his hand away, leaning back into his seat. He cocked a brow. “You look like you need dessert.”

The little woman sniffed, shaking her head.

“No, I’m-”

Corey had already predicted what she was going to say and was already gone before she could finish. She looked around frantically, wondering where the man vanished off too, and only managed to catch him walking into another food stall: _I Scream Treats and More._

_Why was he being so nice to me? Is this a trap?_

_He’s gonna fucking trick me._

_It’s a lie. All a fucking lie._

_A façade._

_A fake!_

Negative thoughts were instantly pushing against Sallie’s skull, and all while she heard every single one of them, one stood out the most:

**Why?**

Soon, Corey returned, holding two small cups with vanilla ice-cream in them, little colour plastic spoons stuffed inside the creamy balls of frozen dessert.

He sat down again and handed one to Sallie.

“Here.”

Timidly, Sallie took it, looking down at it.

“Thanks…” She sounded so perplexed, and carefully she took the little spoon, putting a tiny amount of ice-cream in her mouth, and closed her eyes in satisfaction, emitting a tiny moan of pleasure. Corey was eagerly eating his ice-cream, practically devouring it in three scoops, melted ice-cream dribbling down his angled jaw.

As they both finished, Corey calmly spoke.

“You okay?” He asked her again, this time, he was expecting a different reaction. He tilted his head, dreadlocks falling. “You feeling better now?”

“Much better.” Came the comforted reply. Sallie rubbed her stomach, a small, fragile smile on her face. “So much better…thank you…” She finally looked up to him, looking more alive now. “You didn’t have to.”

“Oh no, I _had_ to.” Corey emphasized firmly. “You looked like you were going to drop dead. Haven’t seen anyone look so fucked since…”

_Myself…_

He waved a hand. “Don’t worry about it. We’ve all been through shit.”

She heard a phone ringing, and Corey pulled his phone out, looking at the contact and answering it, pressing it against his ear.

“Hey babe.”

Sallie mentally winced.

“Really? Cool.” Corey spoke to, who Sallie assumed, Jodie. “I’m just out with a friend.”

_Friend?_

That lifted Sallie’s spirit a little. But she dropped it so quickly. It was obviously a lie, just a cover up. If it was Jodie, Sallie doubt she’d be happy hearing that Corey was with another girl. Silently, Sallie sat there, listening to Corey. She liked his voice, a deep, warmth to his tone, raspy and husky, but a loving rumble beneath each word he said. Something so homely, so _safe_. His accent was pure Iowa. “Okay babe. I’ll see you tonight. Love you.” Corey’s smile dropped when heard the phone hang up, and he hung up himself. Sighing deeply, he stared at his phone and then back at Sallie. “Well…” He started, tucking his phone back into his pocket. “I…need to get going. Jodie…” He decided against even explaining himself.

That broke Sallie. For the first time in years, she felt so connected with someone. A person’s presence that made her feel so much safer, a little bit more alive, someone who told her that the world wasn’t as horrible as she knew all this time.

A little bit of hope.

A little bit of _Faith_ …

Corey stood up, and Sallie followed suit.

“I…” Sallie stopped, and started again. “Thank you, again…I’m…sorry…”

“Sorry for what?” Corey asked, his brows furrowing over his shocking blue eyes. “You have nothing to-”

“I meant for not turning up today. And…for this…” Sallie waved a hand over her. “I’m fucking useless…”

“Stop it.” Corey interrupted, his tone strong. “You’re not. That bitch stepmom made you feel like this. It’s completely understandable…I was just glad I could help.”

_How can he help anyone when he can’t help himself…?_

Regarding the little woman in subtle heartache, he gave her a small smile. “Let’s…just start over, okay?”

Sallie reflected the small smile back, a mutual agreement between the two.

“Yes please.”

“Does…this mean you’re coming back to work?” Corey asked, pulling out a cigarette and began to light it. “The shop gets real fucking boring when you’re alone, and I can’t fucking stand it.”

Understanding his concern, Sallie nodded.

“Yeah,” She glanced at her boots for a moment, and then back at him. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

Corey smiled more, radiating a kindness that Sallie hadn’t felt in a long time, and wanted more of it.

“Good.” With that, he waved, turning off, smoke lining all around him as he moved. “Catch you tomorrow, Virgin Airlines.”

“Hey!” Sallie cried out, feeling a blush darken her cheek, and beyond her, she heard Corey laughing. Though it wasn’t so cruel, so mocking.

It was of friendly banter, amused with Sallie’s reaction, a friendly vibe to his laugh, and Sallie fell in love with it.

It was like having a friend again…


	8. Sex Education

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Nothing lethal, but this chapter contains:  
> \+ A very very important discussion and lesson in sex toys.

Sallie never thought she’d feel such contentment walking inside of a sex store. The return back home was troublesome. Sam’s threat was empty, and no police ever arrived on the scene. Sallie did, however, received a scowling from her father, frowning at her actions, all which were disgustingly exaggerated by his wife, along with the following desperation in why Sallie could never be friends with her.

 _It’s because I want her dead…_ Sallie thought at that time.

So, the next day, when she was turning up for work, she felt _okay_ , and ready for the day.

She walked through the doors, seeing no one, and she hesitated.

“Corey?” Sallie called out, announcing her presence.

No answer.

Nervously, she stepped towards the counter, having a terrible feeling that-

Corey’s head popped up from behind the counter, and Sallie yelped, jumping back. A grin bloomed on his face.

“Ha! Fuck, I scared you and I wasn’t even trying!” He laughed. Immediately, Sallie noticed a difference. He seemed a lot chirpier now, more talkative.

“I wasn’t…expecting…” But Sallie managed to smile back, just pleased that she wasn’t alone anymore. Corey seemed to make this world a bit easier to bear.

Corey chuckled, nodding his head to the staffroom.

“Put your shit in the back and let’s get started. I need to train you in some things.”

“Train me?”

“Yeah, sex educate you.” Spying the shocked reaction, Corey rolled his eyes. “I’m not gonna fuck you. Just…” He waved his hand, directing that she should go and put her stuff in the back.

When Sallie returned, Corey was at the front of the counter, watching her. “How was the return?”

It took Sallie a moment to realise what he meant.

“Hell.” Sallie simply said, her expression saddened. “I survived it. Just…I hate going home.”

“I know.” Corey said gently, looking at her mournfully. He was lucky he lived on his own, but…

The solitude killed him.

“Anyway,” Corey piped up, clapping his hands together and rubbing them, the depression suddenly gone. “Sex Education! You’re working in this sex store, so you need to learn about the tools.” Corey turned, grabbing something off the shelf and in an almost dramatic motion, slammed it onto the counter, the phallic rubber thing wavered at the force. “What’s this?”

“A dildo…” Sallie said in an uneasy tone, a little surprised by Corey’s sudden mood change, and abrupt way of teaching her.

“Good.” He turned again, reaching beneath the counter and pulled out another silver phallic object, this time it was metallic. “And this?”

Sallie hesitated, and Corey held it closer to her face. Sallie leaned back.

“H-hey!”

Corey pushed the button at the bottom of it, and it started to vibrate aggressively, giving Sallie a clue. “A vibrator?”

“Correct.” Turning it off, he placed it on the side and searched for another toy. Sallie, at this point, was becoming intrigued with this game. It was like a trivia game, guessing names of items. “How about this?” Corey faced her, holding a metal rod. And seeing the confusion in Sallie’s face, he smirked.

She was clueless. “A sounding rod.”

“A sounding what?”

Corey grinned, holding it before her.

“This baby is a sex toy for a man.” The Supervisor introduced, and Sallie still looked blanked. He gave her a moment, and when her eyes widened, the penny dropped.

“You mean…men shove this…thing-” The little woman physically winced, shaking hard. “Ew!”

A snort left the supervisor.

“What do you mean ‘Ew!’?”

“Like…” She squirmed, wincing and crossing her legs over, which amused Corey a bit.

“You’re not a man, why are you cringing?”

“Just the idea sounds awful!”

“Well, originally, these were used for medical practises. To drain the piss out of them. But used correctly and safety,” Corey winked. “Can fucking make a man squirm in the more pleasant way.”

Sallie was still shuddering in recoil as Corey placed it on the counter and held another object. A strange bulbous black thing. “So, this…” He waited for her to answer him. Again, the bemused expression told him enough.

“Looks like a doorstop.”

“You really _are_ a little Virgin.”

“Hey!” The little woman quip, her cheeks heating. “I’m not…used to toys or anything like this.”

“This is a butt-plug.” Corey announced proudly. “Shove it _right_ in your tight asshole.” He looked at the bottom of it, sniggered, and showed it to Sallie. On a diamond-colour plate, it said:

**BABY-GIRL**

Corey’s smirk stretched wider, looking down at the Brit. “So this buttplug is yours, because you’re only a baby.”

He placed it down next to the assortment of toys, playfully ignoring the hard stare from Sallie, who was clearly unimpressed by his comment. But, something about each of those comments were light-hearted. To her surprise, they didn’t _hurt_ her…They weren’t hostile comments like she was used to all her life. They were harmless, soft, joking.

“You know an awful lot about sex toys…” Sallie commented with a small smile, and Corey looked down at her, grinning dirtily.

“I have to. It’s my job, _and_ my best interest.”

“You ever tried one of these things?” Sallie picked up the sounding rod, looking at it closely.

“Heh, once. It was uncomfortable but interesting.” He reached over the counter again, picking up a pair of golden balls, tied on a thin string. “You ever tried these?” He asked, waving them slowly before her like he was trying to hypnotise her with them.

“No, what the fuck are they?”

“Kegel balls. Something to do with tightening the pussy and shit…” Corey stared at them, blinking, and tilted his head to the side, observing them. “Don’t know why you’d wanna shove balls in your pussy…”

That surprisingly made Sallie’s lower stomach clench. Stuffing balls in one’s pussy…

Shrugging, Corey placed them onto the side.

“Can I ask something?”

Corey faced back Sallie, his eyes curious.

“Hm?”

“How can anyone fucking fit _that_ in?” Sallie pointed behind him, and when he turned around, he saw the infamous massive dildo that sat on the floor. With a filthy smirk he replied:

“You’d be very surprised.” He looked back at her. “You do realise your pussy is capable of pushing out a fucking human, right?”

He saw Sallie’s eyes widen, realising that he was correct. But still-!

“It looks lethal.”

“Bet it could pack a punch too! Brilliant weapon!”

“We’re in the safest place if a zombie apocalypse were to ever happen.”

Corey burst out laughing, and Sallie was charmed by such a pleasant noise. It seemed to have soothed the demons that came to her mind every time she woke up. Something about it was simply lovely, and she wanted more of it.

It just made her feel better that she was good enough to be found amusing, and not as some sick joke.

The door to the store opened, and both Corey and Sallie looked up to see the bright-crimson haired Jodie walking in.

And behind her was another man, long haired with a brushy goatee.

Sallie felt cold with dread.


	9. The Interrogation of Toxicity

With a wrathful glint in her eyes, Sallie’s expression dropped, and just like day and night, she transformed from someone _finally_ having a good time to a distressed soul wanting to hurt someone. Corey barely noticed, his attention drawn back to his girlfriend and the man.

And he smiled.

He fucking _smiled_.

“Hey babe.” He cooed softly, walking towards the pretty woman and held onto her, his arms wrapped around her and he kissed her, the male standing behind her, waiting patiently.

Sallie felt cold, far more chilled than before as she watched the public display of affection. She began to walk around the counter, taking safety away from the scene. It would be a good idea too, to hide the clenching fists and subtle middle fingers she wanted to flip at the woman.

Jodie giggled cutely, tilting her head back and Sallie watched Corey cupping her pale cheek, porcelain, touching her skin so gently with an affection Sallie craved for. Jodie was pulled so close to him, her small, perfect form against his.

_How warm his body must feel…_

And when the kiss was over, a sloppy make-out instead of a decent keep-it-in-the-bedroom kiss, Corey looked at the man and grinned. “Hey dude.”

“Yo.”

And the two friends reached for each other’s hands and shook them brotherly. From the reaction, Corey didn’t assume the same thing as Sallie, and thought Jodie came in with a new boyfriend, but instead, to her bitter disappointment, he was another friend.

“What are you doing here?” Corey asked, his eyes looking down at his petit girlfriend, who was wearing a startingly revealing shirt, her breasts purposely pushed up and looking full. Sallie had to give it to her, Jodie had a wonderful figure, and while she was bitter about the flaunting of it, Sallie hated how she felt after that.

_If you’ve got the fucking body, flaunt it…_

Though that didn’t bring any comfort to her.

Pulling the collection of toys from the counter-top and tucking them behind the stand, Sallie only listened to the conversation.

“Jay was just looking for some stuff for his girlfriend, and I was going to pick up that…” Jodie smiled sexily, her shoulders pulled up and nudged Corey lovingly. “You know…”

“Oh yeah,” Corey grinned, so devilishly, and Sallie bit her lower lip at the sight of it. Something so appealing about the dirty male. “I have yet to meet this infamous girlfriend of yours, Jay.”

Jay chuckled, shaking his head.

“She’s always busy with studies, but I promise you, you’ll meet her someday. She’s so pretty, so sexy, and damn good with that mouth!”

Jodie beamed at her boyfriend in pride, which made Corey give Jodie another kiss, a deep kiss on the lips, her perfect painted lips never smeared or disturbed.

“I’ll go grab it now.” Corey groaned at her ear, making his lovely girlfriend giggle as he turned and walked to the stock room, which was tucked in nicely in the staffroom.

Sallie watched, eyes of envy glaring hotly at Jodie as she and Jay walked around the store, eyeing up the bondage sets. Sallie pondered for a time, judging them. Jay wore a _Slayer_ shirt, his thick brown hair tied in a ponytail, his goatee trimmed and neat. He seemed a bit taller than Corey, a muscular built, obviously a gym-goer.

Jodie and Jay were whispering to one another, laced with small, impish giggles.

Sallie’s body flushed with white-hot anger as she spied them and saw Jodie’s hand lifting to Jay’s ass-cheek and cupped it, groping it fully. That sent alarm bells to Sallie, why would a girlfriend of someone go out of their way to touch another man sexually…unless-

Jay chuckled, looking at Jodie lewdly, an expression that promised her a good time later, and looked at the seven-tailed whip.

Jodie nodded.

Like a Private Eye, Sallie assessed their actions and body-language in silence, taking mental notes of their interactions. And somehow, deep down, Sallie _knew_ what was happening.

Jodie physically winced when she just noticed the small woman standing by the counter, watching them noiselessly, and she leapt away from Jay as if stung.

Sallie remained still, her eyes cold and hard onto the woman, a darkened threat in her strong blue eyes. When a moment passed, Jay finally realised what had happened, and he too looked at Sallie, his expression blanching.

Jodie muttered something to Jay, his eyes locking onto Sallie, and when she began to approach Sallie, the little Brit shoulder’s clenched.

“Hey…um…Sophie, was it?”

“Sallie.” Came the monotone reply.

“Sallie, yes…” Jodie flashed her an infectious grin, one that promised Sallie all the goodness of life. Unfortunately for her, Sallie had been given this kind of smile many times and was not fooled by it. “So,” She directed a finger between her and Jay. “What you saw there was just friendly banter, nothing out of the ordinary between us, if that’s what you were thinking.”

Sallie’s brows furrowed, saying nothing. But Jodie carried on. “So don’t you go talking to Corey what you saw, because he is aware of it. I’m not cheating on him.”

“I can’t promise anything…” Sallie was surprised to find the acidic reply rolling out of her mouth, slimy between gritted teeth.

Jodie’s face picked up colour, a slight shade of pink, but then Corey was already walking in, and she quickly returned to the sweet, goth-girlfriend, looking up at Corey. “Oh, Corey, Sarah is adorable. She was asking if Jay was single.”

Corey cocked a brow at Sallie, who lurched back away from the counter.

“I didn’t fucking _ask_ that!”

But Corey laughed brightly, waving a hand to calm his alarmed co-worker.

“All the ladies want Jay, so I wouldn’t be surprised. Handsome bastard. Hell, I bet Jodie would date him if she wasn’t stuck with me.”

“C’mon Corey,” Jodie said smoothly, her eyes large and dazzling to her boyfriend. “I’m so lucky to have you.”

The dreadlocked man smiled, so genuinely, so in love, and Sallie felt her heart break when he kissed her again, kissing a lie.

“I’m the lucky one here.”

_But Corey…_

Sallie wanted to whine, but she was seeing the pointed stare from Jay, and she kept her mouth shut.

_Now wasn’t the time…_

When _was_ the time? If Sallie’s theories about this perfect woman was correct, then she wasn’t perfect at all. She felt sick with grief to have witnessed something like that, while by accident, it was evidently dangerous since Jodie and Jay acted like two criminals trying to sweet-talk their way out of prison, and Sallie was the bored authority that wasn’t falling for that lie.

She heard them all…

And the way Corey looked, how happy he seemed…Sallie loved the way he smiled, while a bit darkened and imperfect, it was so _natural_ , so human. Years of smoking had caused his teeth to look bad, but she loved how normal he seemed, not a perfect fabricated daydream, cloaking a nightmare.

Corey was like her…imperfect.

_I can’t ruin this…_

“Did you find what you’re looking for?” Corey asked, his deep voice breaking through Sallie’s destructive thoughts. He was asking Jay, a mischievous grin on his face, “Friday’s the night of sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll!”

Jay nodded, taking the assortment of bondage binds and whips.

“I’ll take these. I’m sure Stephanie will love them!”

_Is that the name you’re going for…?_

“I’m sure she will.” Corey agreed, pointing to the counter. “Sal can serve you.”

Sallie swallowed a hard lump as Jay approached her, and once his back was to Corey, his face turned away, Jay stared harshly at Sallie, emitting hostility, a threat. Sallie could only mirror it back.

Jay placed the toys on the counter, and just as Corey trained her, Sallie began to ring in the items, typing the barcode in silence.

She could hear Corey talking to Jodie, probably what dirty things he was going to do to her tonight.

“Oh, not tonight, baby.” Jodie mewed sadly, kissing his chin. “I’m visiting my Mom, remember?”

“Oh yeah, you mentioned it before.” Corey said tenderly, running his worn fingers through her crimson hair. Sallie wondered what that felt like and subconsciously ran her fingers through her own hair.

“You better not say anything, woman.”

Sallie’s eyes darted up from the barcode of the price-tag, her eyes latching onto Jay’s glare, poisonously. Her throat tightened. Saying nothing, Sallie continued to ring the last few items. “I mean it. Jodie is a beautiful angel and deserves all of the best.”

_No, she fucking doesn’t! She HAS the best, she has a fucking handsome boyfriend right there, a brilliant loving and kind man, and I’ve got nothing!_

Sallie felt herself cry inside…but her expression remained cold and icy. “Hey, listen.” Sallie was uninterested, but Jay carried on whispering. “You keep this between you and me, I’ll give you a real good time.” He winked, leaning over the counter, his voice becoming deep and sensual. “I’ll make you feel anything and everything. You’ll be addicted to me when I am done with you, and believe me, I can go on for fucking ages.” Seeing no reaction, he leaned even closer, his face mere inches away from her, lips close to her cheek. His breath hot. “I can give you anything.”

Sallie’s interest perked up and Jay grinned in triumph. Now that caught her attention. Bitches loved having gifts…

The little Brit faced Jay calmly.

“Anything?”

“Oh yes. Anything.” Jay groaned, licking his lip seductively. Sallie gave him a stiff smile.

“Great. A 1969 Mustang would be fucking fantastic. All black please.”

When Jay’s expression dropped at Sallie’s mocking answer, Sallie finished counting the items, shoving them in a paper-bag. “$34.50, please.”

Grumpily, Jay gathered his cash and handed it to Sallie, who counted it and gave him the change.

“You ruin Jodie, I’ll fucking ruin you.”

“Try me.” Sallie hissed, shoving the paper-bag at Jay, and stood back. “I’m already fucking broken.”

And that was the truth. The painstaking truth.

A little taken back by Sallie’s dark response, Jay gathered his bags and hurried back to Jodie and Corey, who was getting a little too touchy with Jodie. His hand stuffing up her shirt, groping her perky breast, and she smiled against his lips.

_I’m gonna fucking ruin you…_

Sallie’s legs shook uncontrollably, her hands clammy and her head full of dangerous aggressive thoughts. She just wanted to rag that woman’s dazzling hair and drag her across the floor, emitting suffering and pain to her, to show how her life feels.

“You ready?” Jay asked, flashing a smile at Jodie, completely forgetting about his small incident with Sallie. Jay’s brown eyes looked at Corey, and leaning down, he hissed, loud enough for Sallie to pick up. “She’s a bit of a moody bitch, isn’t she?” He was referring to _her_.

And to Sallie’s relief, Corey shrugged.

“I think she’s cool. You just don’t know her.”

_Thank you!_

After another make-out session with Jodie, Jay and Jodie left the sex store, leaving Corey and Sallie alone at last. When Corey spun around and smiled at Sallie, his expression faltered when he saw her looking so-

“What’s up?” He asked, spying the distress and hostility in her features, her eyes fastened on the door, staring after Jodie and Jay, trying to make out if they were holding hands on the way out, or kissing beside the window. But nothing.

_Save him…he saved you…_

Sallie softened slightly, her eyes hesitantly leaving the door and back onto Corey.

“She’s so beautiful.” Sallie stated suddenly, not wanting to start the conversation in the deep end just yet. In order to try and at least _warn_ him, she needed to be subtle.

Her supervisor hummed in agreement.

“Oh yes. She’s stunning. Like a fucking model.”

“Hmm.” Sallie tried to keep her tone neutral. “How did you guys meet?”

“Heh, we met here, actually.” Corey replied, walking back to the counter. He indicated the toys that Sallie tucked away, and she handed half of them to him, holding the other half and the pair walked around the store, putting them back on their correct shelves. “We have a lot in common, including rock and metal. So, I invited her to a bar with some local bands, got drunk, fucked back at her place, and we got together.”

_It was that easy to get you…_

“Hmm…”

Corey snorted, leaning down to Sallie with a cheeky grin.

“Her boyfriend wasn’t happy.”

Eyes wide with horror, she looked back at Corey.

“Wait! She had a boyfriend back then?!”

Corey shrugged, uncaringly.

“According to her, he was a dick to her.”

“How?”

Again, Corey shrugged.

“He just kept accusing her of cheating.”

The pressing silence told Corey to look at Sallie, wondering why she didn’t respond. And she was shooting him a concerned yet deeply angry stare. Not at him, just at the situation itself. How bizarre, and stupid and ridiculous and-

“But…he was _right_.”

“Well, she broke up with him before we got together.”

“That makes no difference. She _cheated_ on him.”

“So?”

Again, Sallie had no reply, no words to express. She was deeply outraged and appalled how calmly and casually Corey was taking this.

“So?! Corey, doesn’t that… _worry_ you?” Sallie’s voice became soft, now hinted with apprehension and sorrow.

“Why should it worry me?”

“Y’know…once a cheater, always a cheater…”

That was when Corey looked down at Sallie, and she had hoped he realised what she was trying to say.

But to her disappointment, he only glared at her callously.

“Okay, _Mom_.” He spat back, a bit harshly, and Sallie recoiled. “I get it, you’re jealous.”

Sallie’s face drained from colour, bitten by the hurtful statement.

“N-No! I-!”

“ _Drop it.”_

And Sallie closed her mouth, disturbed.

How was she supposed to tell Corey her suspicions when he won’t let her talk…?


	10. Home

Everything was just irritating Sallie after that.

Even when the customers were asking her questions about products, and simply greeting them, she found her temper tethering thinly.

_Fuck off. Every one of you, fuck off._

How pathetic, how such a stupid, cheating bitch like Jodie could have already have an effect onto her, and she hasn’t done anything directly to her. No, instead, she was being sneaky and disgusting, hiding her acts in the shadows and evidently _knew_ she was doing wrong.

And then she _tried_ to convince Sallie to lie on her behalf…

Her mother wouldn’t have approved of that. Sallie was brought up well, decent. She was a caring woman with a beating scarred heart…it was such a shame this world broke her into a shamble.

Tomorrow was a day off for the store. Corey had booked a day off for that day, possible for his fun Friday night, and granting himself a recovery day, and because Sallie was still only training, he couldn’t leave her in the store alone. For her safety. Emma had agreed, before she left, that the store can be closed on that day.

It should have been a relief for Sallie, but it wasn’t…

* * *

That next day, Sallie sat on her bed. Fully dressed, with a small breakfast settling in her stomach. Sam was out in the City, and her father was at work, so she had the house to herself.

She didn’t feel the need to go out. Instead, she just sat on her neat bed, forehead pressed against the cold window, staring longingly at the city that was under the assault of heavy rain. She could feel the smell of the rainfall from outside, skies grey and dull, drenching everything into a polished, clean gloss. Somewhere, Corey lived in one of those buildings, probably living with that lying girlfriend of his, cuddling against her at such a miserable morning…

Even the peace of sleep wasn’t enough to keep her head out of that vicious cycle. She still couldn’t understand Corey’s laidback reaction to it.

If Jodie was able to cheat on her last boyfriend with Corey, she would surely do it again. Sallie was confident in that statement, for she was an eyewitness to this testimony of truth. She had seen it before, loving boyfriends devoted to pretty-faced lies, and when those pretty-faced lies ruin that guy, that’s when the sweet-natured man is destroyed, and no one wants him. Not even himself.

She argued with herself that Corey was _happy_ , and that she should be happy for him. But not even the little persuasive voice could convince her. She wasn’t happy for him. She knew he would find out the truth soon enough, and it was going to destroy him.

_What can I do? How the fuck do I approach this…without sounding like THAT girl?_

It was terribly difficult.

Sighing deeply, she glanced at her Sega Mega Drive, and a small urge to play on it came to her.

_Maybe a bit of Sonic will help…_

Sallie shuffled on the bed, her head becoming numb from the constant questioning and theories and assumptions and thoughts…

Her phone began to ring, and she rolled her eyes, presuming it was her father-

It was an unknown number.

She hesitated for a time, staring at her black and red Nokia, and finally answered it.

“Hello?”

“Hey Sal! It’s Corey!” That warm voice returned, and she sat up suddenly, her interest perked now.

“Corey?” Sallie blinked, unable to stop herself from smiling. “H-How did you get my number?”

“Your interview details…I…know I shouldn’t have done it, but I’m bored and have no one else to talk to and…well…” She felt him smile sheepishly, and Sallie eased.

“I-It’s okay…I’m glad you called. I’m…bored myself.” She looked at her little socked-feet. “Did you have fun last night?”

Corey mentioned about his night-out with Jodie, and seemed really excited about it until she mentioned about her visiting her mom…

“Ehh…not really. Didn’t go out in the end.” Corey heaved, reclining back. “Jodie fucked off to her Mom’s, and my friends couldn’t be assed, so I just left it.”

“Oh…” Sallie felt disappointed for him. She would have happily joined him if she was invited, but she wasn’t, and it would just be weird. “I’m…sorry to hear that. And you have today off so…you got anything planned?”

“Nah. I was gonna ask you the same thing.”

Sallie shook her head, turning back to the window.

“No. I’m just sitting in my room.”

“Hmm, same.” Corey then sat up. “Wanna hang out?”

Sallie’s heart fluttered, and for the first time, she smiled, so genuinely, so brightly. She couldn’t stop it! Her hand tapped onto her curved lips, feeling her smile, touching to see if it was real.

“S-Sure!” Sallie piped up, almost too suddenly, and promptly calmed herself down, trying not to sound so desperate. “W-Where should we go?”

“I would say my place but…” A pause. “It’s a bit of a shit-hole and I’m a bit ashamed of it.”

“It’s okay!” Sallie smiled.

“How about your place?”

Sallie stopped for a time. She had this choice given to her right now, an empty house with her only friend in this damn city…was this too good to be true?

“I mean…-!”

“Unless that bitch is in there…”

“N-No, actually. I have the house to myself.” She rubbed the back of her head. “Dad’s at work and she’s fucked off shopping or something, I don’t know when she’ll be back.”

“Do you _want_ me to come down?”

That posing question. Sallie felt her heart blossom, a question she needed to hear all this time.

“Yes please. I really do…” She said weakly, her voice a little delicate.

“Alright. Text me your address and I’ll come down in ten minutes.” Corey replied. “This is my number so…guess you have it now.”

“Thanks, and you have mine too. It’s only fair.”

Their voices were both soft, uplifted and smiling, and while Sallie didn’t see Corey’s voice, just the sheer sensation she got when she _heard_ it in his voice was just as precious.

* * *

Sallie decided to take it upon herself to take more extra care in her appearance. No make-up, she could never use make-up. But she brushed her hair out of its tired ponytail, letting it be free, clad in her baggy black pants and _Enslaved_ t-shirt.

And when the door knocked, her heart leapt to her throat.

_It’s okay, it’s okay…it’s just Corey._

That was the issue. It _was just Corey!_

She hurried down the carpeted staircase, walking to the door and took a second to compose herself. Through the frosted window of the door, she could see Corey standing behind it, his blond on black colours, his slightly slouched pose, hands tucked into his pocket.

Finally, she opened the door, and Corey stood under the porch. His clothes were drenched from the pouring rain, his black hoodie plastering against his body, his dreadlocks dripping, and his black beanie sodden wet.

“Oh god, come in!” Sallie piped up, beckoning Corey to get out from the rain. “Did you walk?”

“Sort of.” Corey smirked lightly as Sallie closed the door behind him, sheltering him from the rain. “I parked further down the road, in case that hell-witch saw me. I just…wanted to make sure you were safe.”

Since that day in the Mall, where Sallie had a complete breakdown to him, Corey always felt this unease with the idea of her living under such a roof. He had trouble sleeping because he wondered if Sallie would ever turn up the next day. Now that she spoke to him about it, he understood her _more_.

“You drive?” Sallie asked, fascinated. “What car?”

“Y’know that little red Ford Probe that’s always parked at work?” He grinned proudly. “That’s my little E.T.”

Sallie blinked.

“E.T?”

“Yeah, like the alien in the film. Because it’s a _Probe_.” And Corey lifted a finger, poking Sallie at her forehead. “ _E.T phone home_.” He mimicked the famous line, in a strange, alien-like impression, and Sallie caught herself giggling.

Corey smiled amiably. He liked that sound.

“Give that to me.” Sallie pointed at his drenched hoodie. “I’ll put the heating on and dry it for you.”

“Nah, I’m okay.”

“No, seriously, it’s fine.”

Corey frowned, hugging at his arms almost looking a little scared. But when he looked at Sallie’s pleading eyes, he knew she only wanted to help. He slowly removed his hoodie, handing the massive thing to Sallie, revealing an interesting band shirt.

**KoЯn**

“I like your shirt.” Sallie smiled, eyeing up the black shirt with the white pattern, a ragged scarecrow propped against barbed wire fencing.

“You ever heard their music?” Corey questioned. “Pretty fucking badass. Nu Metal.”

“Nu Metal?”

“Fuck, Sal. I need to lend you my CD next time. You’ll love their stuff! It’s so original and different, but just as fucking heavy.”

“Oh, I’d like that.” Sallie perked up, curious about this band she had never heard of before. “You go sit down, I’ll put this out to dry and make drinks.” She pointed at his beanie. “You want that drying too?”

“Sure.” He took the beanie off, ruffling his heavy dreadlocks and watched Sallie hurry upstairs. She placed the clothes on her radiator, setting the boiler timer on and waited patiently for it to respond, resuming a familiar hum.

By the time she returned downstairs, she found Corey in the living room, his eyes staring at a large, obnoxious portrait of Mr. Knight and Sam. A happy couple, with genuine smile and a sparkle of life in their eyes.

“Is that _her?_ ” Corey asked, his nose wrinkling in disgust. Sallie didn’t have time to answer. “She looks older than the fucking Queen of England. Bet she had a pet dinosaur when she was a kid.”

A snort escaped Sallie, and she clapped her hand over her mouth to stop herself, but it was already too late. Corey turned around to Sallie, seeing the impish amusement in her eyes, and he smiled kindly. “Glad that tickled you.”

“It’s true, though!” Sallie agreed, looking at the printed image of her father and his wife. “She’s fucking horrendous. Looks like a fucking scrotum.”

It was Corey’s turn to snort, looking down at Sallie.

“You don’t even know what a fucking scrotum looks like, Virgin!”

“Why not teach me, supervisor?” Sallie bantered back automatically without thinking, nudging him playfully.

“Ohh, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

Sallie only answered with a silly giggle, but she was surprised to hear that. Was that a flirtatious joke?

_Overthinking…_

Corey’s smile dropped as he surveyed the room, glaring at the perfectly placed furniture and the many photos of Sam and Mr. Knight. “This…looks more like a show-room than a fucking home.”

“Thank you, finally…someone gets it.” Sallie’s smile also faded, her eyes falling as Corey scrutinized the room.

“I don’t see any photos of you…” Hearing her silence, he faced her and realised that he was right. “It’s like it’s _their_ home, and not yours.”

“Exactly.” Sallie said in a tiny voice, finally looking up to him. “It…doesn’t feel like home anymore.”

“You haven’t felt home in a long time too?”

Sallie nodded, rubbing her hands nervously.

“When was it the last time you felt like…you were at _home?_ ”

“England.” Sallie replied almost instantly. “When Mum was still alive…”

“What does she look like?”

The little Brit’s eyes lit up, and in a small voice, she spoke:

“I’ll show you.”

She took Corey upstairs to her room, giving her supervisor a tour of her home, the living hell she had to suffer, all invented as a perfect house, but the walls were merely masks to a darker, crueller atmosphere. Taking Corey to her small room, she led the man to her bed, grabbing the small photo-frame and held it to him. Delicately, Corey took it.

He looked down at a magnificent woman, one that vibe such grace and elegance, as if she was from a royal family. It was so strange to think such an attractive woman was Sallie’s mother. Not that he didn’t see Sallie as unappealing, but she looked like something from royalty, something so hard to find. It was like she existed in fairy-tales. Golden brown curls for hair, plump natural lips, a pretty face with green-blue eyes. From looking at the photo of her father and her mother, it was obviously that Sallie took most of her father, with his dark brows, hair and hard, blue eyes, but she had her mother’s nose, her chin, her _smile_ …

“She’s beautiful…” Corey breathed, and Sallie sat next to him, smiling peacefully. She wanted to rest her head on his shoulder…

“Thank you. She really was.”

Lowering the frame down, Corey turned back at Sallie, his eyes kind.

“You…never told me how she died…”

Her smile became sad, but not because of his question, but the reason behind it, the subject of it.

“She…was troubled.” Sallie started as Corey carefully placed the picture frame back by her bed. “She had some troubles with her own dad. My Granddad.” Corey watched her, listening intensely like he had done before, and it was such a relief to have someone actually _listen_ to her. “He completely rejected her for marrying my dad, and she began drinking.” Corey winced, not liking where this was going. This was uncannily familiar to himself. “She got so bad; she became an alcoholic. My dad tried to save her, but he was too late.” Sallie blinked slowly, tears edging the corner of her eyes. “She died from alcohol poisoning…”

“How old were you?”

“Twelve.” Sallie said bluntly, looking at Corey, and the supervisor felt a pang of hurt from the sight of it. “Despite her flaws, she was a good mother to me. She brought me up well, she treated everyone with such a love and affection…she was everyone’s friend. She taught me that this world needed more light, and that’s why she was teaching me all of these good morals…never really…understood what she meant until she died, and the world got very, _very_ dark…” Promptly, Sallie looked away, not wanting Corey to see her as weak for mourning over her mother. But Corey reached over and grabbed her hand, his dreadlocks shifting.

“Hey, it’s okay.” He whispered, his voice enticing her enough to look back at him. “You miss your Mom. I can understand that.” He paused, looking down as he searched for his words, and then back at her. “I know we barely know each other…but I can tell you’re a real good person. Deep down, in your heart. You were sent to this world by an angel, and you’re trying so _fucking_ hard. The world had…broken your wings and all you’re trying to do is fly.”

Tears thickened on her lashes, Sallie crumbling before Corey again.

“That…was beautiful. Fucking poetry.”

Corey wanted to be cocky and grin as he always did. But found himself to not do so. Instead, he smiled gently.

“It’s true…you’re just trying to be good in a horrible world. I’m sure your Mom is proud of you…”

No one…had ever said those words to her before, and while they may seem redundant and typical, something about Corey saying it to _her_ made her feel better.

Shivering, Sallie bowed her head, wanting to scoop the man in her arms and hold him forever.

That would be stupid, so needy and desperate-

“Can…?”

Corey leaned down, trying to hear what she was going to say. “This sounds dumb.”

“Go on…”

Shyly, Sallie lifted her head and looked back at her supervisor, her eyes full of tears, ready to be wept.

“I…need a hug…” That strangled voice came, choked with emotion. Corey wasn’t the typical kind to just hug anyone. If anything, he didn’t like touching anyone but himself and Jodie. But this…

…this was _different_.

Sallie watched as Corey opened his arms, his hands beckoning for her to come towards him.

“Come here,”

Her hope lifted in a powerful flush, and shuffling towards him, she eagerly settled into a hug with him, her face pressed against his shoulder, arms hugging his broad chest firmly, and the pair of them embraced each other for a long time.

Corey felt Sallie shake, and when he whispered:

“It’s safe to cry.”

Sallie did so, and broke against him, her fingers grasping hard as she wept hysterically. If it wasn’t the build up hurting, it was the interaction between another human with her. That first sensation of a human connection finally given to her, some form of comfort and affection.

She needed this. So _bad_.

It was a long moment, with Corey rocking and hushing her calmly, having experienced in comforting friends back during those night-outs. He could feel from the feral sobs that Sallie needed this more than ever. How she latched onto him desperately like a child with its mother. She’d wrap her legs around him if she could, that’s how hard her hug was.

She was terrified of letting go.

“Your hugs are so nice…” Sallie whimpered against his shoulder, sniffing tearfully. “I feel…so much better…”

“I can tell.”

After a moment longer, the two of them broke the hug, with Sallie composing herself and Corey watching her. It was strangely pleasant to find another person mirroring his traumas, his dark thoughts and cynicism. She was like a female version of him…but a virgin.

“Corey, listen…”

“Hmm?”

Once Sallie dried her eyes, she took a deep breath.

“I need to talk to you, about Jodie.”

Corey groaned, rolling his eyes.

“Go on.” He grunted, though he sounded reluctant in hearing what she had to say.

“No, seriously Corey, listen…” She was going to tell him. “I…This has nothing to do with me, but I needed to tell you.” Corey said nothing, folding his arms, watching her. “I know Jodie’s cheating on you.”

Corey cocked a brow, though he had to supress his shocked reaction from her bold exclamation.

“What makes you so sure?”

“Because I saw her touching up that Jay guy.”

Sallie stared back at Corey, seeing him looking down at her firmly. She saw his Adam’s apple shifted in anticipation.

“What was she doing?”

Sallie felt perturbed by that soft question, but she complied.

“She was touching his ass, and whispering and pointing…at the sex toys he bought…”

Sallie glanced at Corey, gauging his reaction. He was silent, his mind trying to conjure as many possible answers in how and why that would be impossible. Like he was trying to deny what she said. “I was…trying to talk to you about it yesterday but-”

“I know.” He said abruptly, rubbing his dreadlocks roughly as he turned away. “I’ll…have to investigate…”

“I’m sorry.”

Corey faced her immediately, grabbing her shoulders.

“No, no, don’t say sorry. I… _really_ appreciate it.” His eyes looked tragic suddenly, that spark gone, and Sallie felt her heart bleed for it. “I need to…find out some things then…figure out what’s going on, if she is cheating on me…”

“If she could so easily cheat on her last boyfriend with you, she can do it again with someone else.” Sallie added quietly, her gaze heart-breaking. “I’m sorry...”

“It’s okay…” He gave Sallie a half-assed smile. “Thank you…I know you’re only looking out for me…”

Sallie smiled back, sharing the sad attempt of pretending everything was okay. She knew it wasn’t. Now that she had given Corey that image, she didn’t know how he was going to tolerate it.

Hopefully, he’ll be free from that bitch’s deceitful binds, because he-

“You really deserve the best.”

Corey blinked back at her slowly, disbelieving her words, and she could relate to that.

A set of keys jangled at a door far away, and Corey watched as Sallie lurched from her bed.

“Shit! They’re home!”

“Who-?”

But Corey stalled when he heard that nasally voice complaining over something.

“Why is it so hot here?”

Sam.

“You have to get out of here!” Sallie piped up, fear drenching her voice. Corey smirked, suddenly looking arrogant.

“I’ll be fine. Let her see a fine man sitting on your bed.”

“No, seriously, please!” Sallie begged softly, holding his shoulders and looking at him with deep, imploring eyes. “I…can’t do it right now. Not right now, please!”

Feeling the urgency in her tone, Corey nodded, standing up.

“How can I…” He trailed off, seeing the window and then grinning at Sallie, spying her worry.

“Corey, no…not while it’s raining.” Sallie whimpered as Corey unlocked the door and pushed it upwards, revealing the downpour outside grey Des Moines.

“Oh, fuck off, I’ll be fine.” Corey chuckled, already stepping out onto the small roof that hung over the kitchen beneath them. Sallie hurried to the bed, watching as Corey crawled out of the window, holding the wooden beams of the house. Standing on the roof comfortably, he looked at Sallie. His face and body becoming soaked with the rain. “Wish I could have stayed longer; I’d love to play that Sega.”

“Please be safe.” Sallie begged, poking her head out of the window, her face close to Corey.

He grinned.

“See. Too good for this fucking hellhole.” Patting her cheek softly in mock-adoration, he began to scale down. “I’ll see you tomorrow in work, Virgin.”

Sallie decided against fuming at him for that nickname. Instead, she replied:

“You can call and text me if you like. I’m always here.”

When Corey finally leapt off the roof and into the forestry outskirts, he waved, nodding.

“Same with you!” And that was when he vanished into the trees.

The little woman settled on her bed sadly, now resuming back to where she was before, staring at the rainfall outside, wondering where Corey was.

She could hear Sam downstairs beneath her, wandering in the kitchen.

_I wish I made that coffee for him…_

Then she remembered-!

Spinning around swiftly, she saw Corey’s beanie and black hoodie still lounging over her radiator and hurried towards it.

“Shit!” She hissed, forgotten to give it back to him. But, then again, she could always let it dry and give it back to him the next day at work. She would have happily washed it too, nice and fresh for him, but Sam would question the new articles of clothes, and Sallie couldn’t be bothered with it.

Sighing, she picked the hoodie up, feeling the weight of it and suddenly held the thing against her face, sniffing the aftershave and musk Corey left behind on it. It smelled just like him, as if he practically lived in it. Male musk with Corey’s dreadlocks, a hint of aftershave with a gallon of cigarette smoke. All a combination of Corey, and it made her mind happy, the hoodie injecting homemade endorphins into her.

Contently, Sallie sat on the bed, still hugging the hoodie, and slowly reclined back, closing her eyes and thought back what Corey said.

An angel with broken wings.

That made a lot of sense now.


	11. Best Friend

****

****

**1994, September**

That first week was soon over, and Emma had returned. It was the moment of truth when Emma asked Corey how Sallie was, and how did she cope. Deep down, Sallie knew she did the best she could regarding the Jodie and Corey situation during that week, and she was just waiting to be sent home.

Something always seem to turn against her when she was content…

And to her amazement, she watched as Corey smiled, glancing at Sallie:

“Nah. She’s been very good. You made a great choice, Emma.”

And Sallie just wanted to cry and hug him. It took all her strength to resist the urge. Corey had given her a moment of peace, and she sighed deeply in relief.

“And how has Corey been with you, Sallie?”

Emma’s voice piped up, and Sallie looked up suddenly from her reassured moment, her eyes glancing from her to Corey, and for a split-second, she saw concern in Corey’s eyes. He hasn’t forgotten her threat when Jodie came in, he knew that if Sallie spoke about it, his job would be ruined. But she smiled and returned the favour:

“Corey’s been brilliant, he’s taught me all sorts and helped me. Felt really comfortable.” And it wasn’t as if she was lying. It was the whole truth, and Corey’s shoulders eased.

“That’s wonderful.” Emma beamed, seemingly more happy than usual. She reached in her bag, and she handed something to Corey. “Give this to her. I need to make a call.” She hushed, taking her phone and hurried to the staffroom.

When she was gone, Corey smiled coolly at Sallie.

“Thanks for covering me.”

“Thank you for covering me too.” Sallie reflected, sharing a calm smile with her supervisor. Corey took a step forward, and held a small, brand-new badge to Sallie. It had the company logo on the side, with her name neatly printed beside it.

“Welcome to the team, Virgin.” Corey grinned, and Sallie eagerly took it, her eyes full of pride and glee. The child-like happiness lifted Corey’s cold heart slightly. He liked making this woman happy, she seemed to be the only one that appreciated his efforts.

“Thank you,” And with that, Sallie proudly attached the badge onto her black shirt, finally feeling a part of _something_.

For once, she felt good about herself.

Emma was impressed with the two, glad that the pair were comfortable and bonded well, for she had another business trip the following week. When Corey spied Sallie’s reaction, his eyes told her to relax, and that he would explain about what is even going on.

Another business trip? Does this woman ever stay at work, or was it just normal for store managers to just disappear on their staff like this?

According to Corey, this was very normal for Emma, to just run off like this, to vanish onto these countless business trips. And while Corey enjoyed the peace of not having a manager looming and judging his every move, the pressing silence was deadly to him, and he was often left with his own thoughts, _terrible_ thoughts…

And so, throughout August, and even September, Sallie kept returning to work, her only inkling of happiness in her life, respite from her treacherous house, all while she spent more time with Corey. Their co-worker partnership quickly became comrades, good friends working in a small retail store and just entertaining one another with jokes and stories when the store was empty, and when Emma wasn’t around.

Emma wouldn’t have approved of Corey’s and Sallie’s whimsical swordfights with the display double-ended dildos.

Jodie kept coming in, however, and always seemed to come in whenever Emma wasn’t around. Sallie knew that Corey was texting Jodie during the shift, which she felt a bit disgruntled about at first. She assumed he was trying to solve the relationship, but when Jodie walked in, holding an air of absolute sensuality and perfection, and she would take Corey’s hand and kiss him, Sallie’s heart sank.

Did Corey just simply not take her accusation seriously?

It really disappointed her, watching Corey holding onto her so covetously, so proud to have such a gorgeous model for a girlfriend that could do no wrong…how _she_ was so lucky to have _him_. Sallie felt like a worthless liar, a fool for even trying to save him. But she felt as though she had more power in this but didn’t know how to do it. She didn’t know how to save Corey without hurting him.

Sallie was the third wheel, the best friend of a man she could never have, and even if she didn’t feel this strange attraction to her supervisor, she still _cared_ about him.

He was her little ray of sunshine in her forever-storms, her little gold dust in the pit of fire. He was the only reason Sallie was still alive today, and to think about what could potentially happen if Corey wasn’t careful…

_Bitch, you’re the reason why you ruin relationships._

Sallie hated Jodie. She fucking loathed that fake…fucking… _bitch…_ How she was evidently doing wrong and _knew_ it and got away with it. She was so beautiful, a perfection that could only be captured behind movie screens, so slim and pretty, the kind of girl that everyone wanted or wanted to be. Her beauty was her excuse, her scapegoat in all her wrong endeavours. If she was caught lying, she’d use her sex appeal to plead against her crimes.

Sallie’s hand clenched harder…

The voices were getting louder in her head. _So_ much louder. They were screaming, a banshee rattling against the cage she had held onto.

_I wanna kill her! I wanna kill her! She’s a bitch! A fucking bitch! A slimy, cheating little whore! She’s ruining your life again! She’s a Sam, she needs to die! She needs to die!_

**_FUCKING BITCH-!_ **

Suddenly, pain. Unbearable aching, sharp and jagged, tearing at her skin and muscle and veins and cutting at her blood, white-hot agony-

Sallie screamed abruptly as the glass shattered in her hands, and she shrieked again in fright when she saw glass shards injected in her flesh, slicing through her fragile skin like paper, so easily, and blood-

_So much blood!_

Crimson rained down from her stabbed, quivering palms, dripping onto the table frantically like rainfall, ribbons of dark red running down her forearms as she held her hands up, seeing the glistening glass shards embedded in her hands. Her fingers froze, the idea of moving them too painful to bear. Any form of movement hurt.

Sallie’s scream diminished into a pathetic whimper, tears falling from her eyes as she animalistically cried, her mind blinded and lost in what to do, the sheer panic taking her and holding her.

In her destructive mind, her hand clenched onto the glass of water she was drinking from and held it so hard that she crushed it in her strength, shattering it, and the fragments stabbed into her palms and fingers.

Now she was bleeding uncontrollably, and she stood from the table, the chair toppling back onto the floor from her sudden movement.

She tried to scream for Corey, but she was too taken by the shock and terror, all she could have done is babble. Thankfully, her first scream was enough to alert her supervisor, who dropped the box of sexy lingerie and ran to the staffroom.

“ _Sal?_ ” He caught himself by the door, and the instant he saw red, his mind clicked into instincts. Sallie stood there, her hands red, crying, her eyes begging for help. Blood was trailing on the floor. “ _Shit_ , come here!” He ordered urgently, grabbing her wrists gently and pulled her to the sink. The glass pieces were big enough for Corey to take out manually, pulling at the fragments and placing them on the side, blood staining it. Sallie yelped at the movement of glass, and Corey hushed her, pulling her head against his chest. “Just stay still. I know it hurts.” He hushed firmly, holding her head at his chest. “Just cry here. It’ll be over.”

Corey didn’t know what had happened, but he’ll soon be asking questions when she had calmed down.

And Sallie listened. She shut her eyes and sobbed, trying to ignore the sensation of glass tugging at her flesh, pulling as Corey carefully took them out, her palms trembling, feeling so cold now that the adrenaline had left her. When he was satisfied that all glass pieces were gone, he hushed her, feeling the little woman weep against his chest. He took her hands and held them under the tap, making sure the water was bearable and calm, to not antagonise the cuts. Sallie remained pressed against Corey, feeling safe and scared of the world. Scared of herself, as if she was too scared in trusting herself anymore.

Well, she _did_ give into the pressure scowls of those dark voices and now she was bleeding…

Once they were washed, Corey gathered the bandages and wrapped them around her shaking hands. Sallie watched, seeing his lean, worn hands comfortingly wrapping the dry, warm bandages around her small hands, her fingers looking so petit compared to his. She was fascinated with the size difference, a man and a woman’s hand, touching and together, almost majestically in a form of dance. She wanted to hold them, so badly.

“There.” Corey sighed in relief, tying the last part and made sure they held onto her open wounds, administering their healing process. “Now…” His hand softly squeezed her palms, applying pressure, and Sallie winced. “What the fuck happened, woman? I can’t leave you alone for five minutes, can I?” His voice was soft, subtly playful, but a hint of seriousness warned her that she needed to explain herself.

“I…don’t know…”

She did know, in a way. She knew how it started, but she didn’t understand how such a flawless woman could just have such an excruciating effect on her. “I just…have a lot on my mind.”

“Home?”

Sallie nodded, partly lying. Home never helped, but Jodie was the real issue, and Sallie couldn’t bear the thought of just asking Corey why the _fuck_ he was still with someone like that… maybe he himself was desperate, just like her father, not wanting to be alone…but then why…

_Men are confusing. Dumb and confusing…just like women…_

_People are fucking stupid…_

Corey grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into a soft hug, feeling her small hands reaching his back and held him tenderly, too much in pain in hugging him properly. But he held her tightly, his arms shielding her from the cruel world outside, and her own head. Somehow his scent and kindness eliminated all the dreadful thoughts, muting them and quieting them down, suppressing them with the pressure of his care.

Sallie nuzzled against his chest, praying these terrible thoughts never return. But, eventually, she knew they would come back, and she dreaded that day.

A part of her told her that she needed to be strong for Corey.

* * *

**1994, October**

“Hey, Sal.”

Sallie perked her head up from the video boxes, looking to see her supervisor lounging over the counter. He had been watching her neaten and tidy the video displays to add more from the storeroom. When she had her mind to it, she was very good at her job.

The little woman sat on the floor, surrounded by pornographic videos of naked firemen and sexy maids.

“Yeah?” She piped up, turning around on the floor to face him.

“So…um…” Corey’s eyes dropped for a moment, then he started again. “You doing anything tonight?”

Sallie snorted, shaking her head.

“Of course not. If sulking in my room is what you call fun.” She glanced at the videos again, separating the new collection from the Christmas and Halloween specials. “Why?”

Corey paused.

“I was invited to a friend’s band show. They’re playing in _Stairways_ , and I was…wondering if you wanted to come.”

Sallie’s heart pounded madly, excitement taking over her.

“O-Oh?!” She stammered, smiling wildly. “I-I would love to. I’ve gone past _Stairways_ a few times, but never been in it.”

Corey smiled understandably.

 _Stairways_ was a Rock Club. A haven for all rockers from all ages beyond 18 years old, an intimate building which shared a lot of good times with fellow headbangers and windmillers.

“Oh, you’ll fucking love it in there, Sal! The music is fucking awesome, there’s two bars and a dancefloor, and live music!” Corey was getting excited, almost as if he hadn’t had a friend to come along with for ages. “Come with me!”

That was when Sallie’s smile dropped. She could, but…

“I doubt they’d let me go…” Sallie said sadly, her head hanging. Sam and her father would frown at the idea of her going to a nightclub.

But Corey patted his hand on the counter.

“Bah! Don’t fucking let them ruin your fun. You’re, what, 20 years old? You’re not a fucking kid anymore.” Corey straightened against the counter, his eyes locking onto the little woman. “Besides, you’ll be with me. I’ll keep you safe.”

Sallie still wasn’t convinced. She knew Sam would ruin her opportunity. If she had the chance, she would bolt Sallie’s doors and windows closed. Somehow her misery amused the witchy stepmother. Seeing the doubt in her eyes, Corey felt a little desperate. “ _Please?_ ” Now he was begging, his beseeching eyes and pleading tone of voice crippling Sallie. Of _course_ she wanted to come along…

“I just…”

“Just say you’re hanging out with a friend. I mean, you are, right?”

“True, but _all night_?”

“It won’t be all night, I promise!” Corey said enthusiastically. “I’ll meet up with you. I’ll be with you!”

Sallie felt cynicism leaking through her tongue, her previous dark thoughts returning.

“Can’t…Jodie be there? I’m sure you’ll rather have her with you.”

“I’d invite her, but she doesn’t like live bands.”

Sallie’s frown darkened.

_How can you call yourself a rock-lover if you don’t like live music?_

Corey read her expression, and he too mirrored her thoughts. But he pushed it aside.

“C’mon, Sal. Please. I think you’ll like it. It’ll be fun.” He placed a hand on his chest. “Plus, you have the pleasure in being with me.”

A small giggle left the little woman, that was true. Sallie sat on the floor, fidgeting with her fingers. The cuts had healed by now, though faint red lines remained there. They were hard to notice until someone scrutinised them, and Corey was good enough to allow her to wear fingerless gloves at work so no one would take any notice. Now, she wore them as casually as everything else.

“I mean…I do still have your beanie and hoodie.” Sallie said softly. “It’d be rude of me to keep them any longer,”

“Yeah, wench! I want them back. You’re gonna have to start paying fucking rent for them at this rate.”

Sallie stuck her tongue out.

“I was starting to give them names! Beanie and Hoodie.”

Corey snorted at the remark, shaking his head, dreadlocks tumbling off his shoulders and in front of his chest.

“So, you coming along?”

Sallie took a deep, long moment, swallowing.

“Yes. I want to.”

She was going to take this moment.

* * *

Sallie stood in the bathroom, staring at herself for a time. She wore her _Metallica_ shirt, one of her favourites. It had faded in time, well-loved and well-worn. But she felt comfortable and happy in it. Her hair, she decided to let loose, brushed strangely immaculate to her surprise, and her eyes had a bit of life, a bit of hope.

_God…_

She felt scared. She was fully aware of the little tremors that grew in intensity the closer the night it got. It was a sultry evening, the sun setting behind the buildings of the city.

Sam and her father were downstairs, eating food. Sallie didn’t eat. She simply wasn’t invited. Her phone vibrated and Sallie lifted the phone out of her jean pocket.

**You asked them?**

Corey. Sallie swallowed, replying back:

**Trying. I’m scared.**

And promptly, Corey replied:

**Don’t be scared. You can do it.**

Corey was right. Sallie had no reason to _not_ go out. She was just going to tell them. Grabbing her phone tightly, she thought about what she was going to say, about how she was going to say it.

Her phone vibrated again, and she looked.

**You need to tell them. I’m picking you up in 5.**

Sallie’s heart leapt to her throat, and was about to text him back demanding him to stay, but realised that…

…she _wanted_ him.

_I need to do this. I can’t let Corey down…_

Taking a deep breath, Sallie turned to the toilet seat, seeing Corey’s hoodie and beanie lying there, ready. She took them both and held them against her face and chest, hugging the pieces of clothing as if doing so would grant her the strength in what she was about to do.

And then finally, she left the bathroom and approached downstairs.

* * *

“Dad, I’m going out tonight.”

Her father blinked from the newspaper he was reading and looked up at his daughter. He saw how dressed she was, hugging onto a hoodie and had her hair down. Not prettified in a dress, but it was evident she had plans in going out.

“Oh? Where to?”

“At a friend’s.” Sallie simply replied, and heard Sam snort a cruel giggle.

“What? Sallie _actually_ has friends?” Sam laughed, narrowing her eyes at Sallie suspiciously as she ate a piece of breaded chicken. The food smelt divine. “And who is this friend?”

“Corey.” Sallie’s throat got tight suddenly. She was doing nothing wrong, but she felt like a criminal for having a friendship with another person. “He works with me.”

“So, he’s a co-worker, not a friend.” Sam stated, watching the little woman frown.

“No, he’s a friend. My _best_ friend.” Sallie gritted.

Sam snorted and looked back at her food.

“You don’t have best friends, love. Otherwise you’ll be seeing and hearing from them.”

_I can’t fucking help it if they’re in a different state and a fucking different country!_

Sallie held her retort back. She wanted to win her permission, and arguing would only worsen it, and turn into a screaming match.

“I’m going to Corey’s.” Sallie repeated, putting down the final verdict.

“Okay love.” Her father was rather calm about it. Like he knew his daughter was old enough and smart enough to go out late at night. She used to do it all the time when they lived in California. But Sam wasn’t done ripping into her.

“What does he look like? How old is he? What’s his favourite colour?” Sam’s infamous questioning began, and she only spoke like this to proof herself right. If Sallie failed to answer such ‘simple’ questions, then she wasn’t a friend.

And Sallie was ready.

Through flying colours, she answered almost immediately.

“Corey is really lovely, very handsome and very kind. He has blond dreadlocks and loves rock and metal like me. He’s 21 years old, and his favourite colour is black.” Sallie was smirking, ever so proudly. And despite Sam’s moment of surprise, the witch grunted again.

“And he is just a friend, and not a fuckbuddy?”

_What, like you and dad were before you got ‘official’…_

“Best friend.” Sallie reiterated. And that was it. Sallie made that official. Corey was her best friend, even if Corey didn’t feel the same way. Only a person who made her feel like she could survive the day was her best friend, someone who kept her going, kept her living, only someone who made her feel like that was her best friend.

Sam wouldn’t understand it. _She_ had co-workers, not friends…

Sallie’s eyes slowly slid to her father, who was too engrossed in his newspaper. He looked tired, exhausted.

“Dad, I’m going to see Corey.” Sallie repeated one last time, ignoring Sam’s intrusion, and speaking to her father. This was a family meeting, and Sam wasn’t part of it.

Finally, her father grew enough interest to fold the newspaper and look at his daughter.

“I don’t know this Corey.”

“I can always introduce you to him.” Sallie said hopeful, knowing her father was only being protective.

The door knocked abruptly, causing everyone to hesitate. Sam stood up then.

“I’ll get that.” She leered faintly, knowing exactly who was there. She shot Sallie a hard look, in which the little Brit ignored her. When Sam was gone, her father groaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose with his thumb and index finger.

“Sal, I…want you to be safe.” He sighed eventually, looking at her with weary blue eyes. “I don’t know this Corey.”

“You’ll like him, dad.” Sallie mewed softly. “He makes me happy.”

And she felt relieved when her father finally smiled.

“I’m glad to hear that. You need a friend like that.”

“ _Sallie!_ ” Sam screeched from the front door. “It’s for you.” That voice was tangled with revulsion. Sallie gave her father a pleading look, and her father nodded, allowing her to go out. Quickly, she hugged his neck, and her father only patted her back, not really returning the embrace.

“You wanna meet him?” Sallie whispered to his ear.

Her father paused.

“Okay.”

Sallie pulled away and approached the door.

Sam stood by the door, glaring harshly at Sallie, disturbed that she had even invited Corey over without asking permission first. But it wouldn’t have mattered anyway, Sallie tried to convince Corey to meet up with her. But instead, Corey turned up knocking, ready to pick her up. Sallie walked down the corridor and saw Corey standing there, hands tucked into his pockets, and he gave Sallie a small smile. He wore another hoodie, black with _Metallica_ on it, an accident. He didn’t mean to wear matching clothes with Sallie, but neither of them cared. He had his black jeans, and scruffy sneakers.

“Hey,” Sallie greeted in reprieve. Corey felt it.

“Hey,” Corey replied, watching Sallie come towards him promptly. As soon as Sallie met him, practically pushing Sam out of the way, she embraced Corey into a hug, clutching onto him as if her life depended on it. Sallie’s face buried in his dreadlocks, shivering, her fingers grasping his back.

Her supervisor held onto her too, feeling the urgency in her hug. It was as if she was terrified. He didn’t say anything to Sam. He only looked at her as he embraced the little woman, a low hostility to his eyes. He stared at the older witch in mirror judgement, she was even worse to look at in person.

Finally, his eyes peeled away from Sam, and hugged onto Sallie firmly, his face into her small shoulders.

And yet both can still feel Sam glaring at them.

Sam judged Corey. _Very_ hard. He wasn't as pristine as she had imagined, not this perfect man Sallie described in the last five minutes. Sam had expected a higher city man, donned in designer clothes with slick back hair, a wealthy background, highly educated. Instead, she got this high school dropout.

_Those dreadlocks…_

Sam cringed in distaste. Dreadlocks were such dirty things…

After a couple minutes of hugging, Corey and Sallie pulled away slightly, still tucked in one another’s arms.

Corey, slowly, looked back to Sam.

"You must be Sam. I heard wonderful things about you. Sallie tells me all the good stories about you." He said, almost in a sing-song tone.

Sam's nose wrinkled at his comment.

"Hmm, I bet she does." She murmured sarcastically, knowing that her relationship with her husband’s daughter wasn't the best.

That was when Sallie's father came in, a 6-foot beast that posed more of a physical threat to anyone than a mental one. That was Sam's job.

"You must be Corey." Mr. Knight smiled, and it was genuine. Unlike Sam, Sallie's father tried with her friends, with any guests. It was almost like he had a chance to show off, and he took it gladly. It was at least not as painfully toxic as his wife. He held a hand out to shake Corey’s hand.

Keeping his arms around Sallie, protecting her away from Sam, who remained close to them, Corey smiled wider, a sincere smile and shook Sallie's dad's hand like two gentlemen.

"Yes, Corey Taylor, sir. It is a pleasure to finally be meeting you." He said in a soft tone, a happy one.

Corey was happy to meet Sallie's dad, but... it was that cunt that stood there he detested. But it wasn't going to be that bad of a day... at least one would hope.

“So,” Mr. Knight folded his arms. “Where are you taking my daughter?”

“Back to mine.” Corey lied, taking the plan he made with Sallie. It sounded less lethal than to a nightclub. “We’re gonna have pizza and play video games.”

“Hmph.” Sam shot, making it obvious she didn’t believe them. “You want condoms?”

Her jeer embarrassed Sallie, and Corey felt the little woman wince at Sam’s words, shadowing her with her hatred.

And Corey responded with a hard smile, forced now.

“I’m not going to rape her,”

Mr. Knight was taken back by the comment, and so was Sam. The bluntness of his remark stunned the older woman, and promptly his smile returned to a gentle, friendly one, focusing on Mr. Knight. “We’re just going to play video games, have food, and watch a movie. Nothing dangerous, Mr. Knight.” Corey continued. “I’ll bring her back in one piece.”

Mr. Knight nodded slowly, exchanging a glance at his wife, and saw that she was going to have a conspiracy theory night with him about Sallie’s new friend. But he let it rest for now.

“Thank you.” Mr. Knight said. He looked at Sallie. “You have your phone and keys?”

“Yes, dad.” Sallie piped up, slowly breaking away from Corey, feeling a little comfortable and safe with him. “I’ll let you know when I’m there.”

“Okay,” He hugged Sallie and kissed her cheek. “Stay safe and have fun.”

“I will.”

Stepping out of the porch, Sallie looked at Corey and smiled, ready to leave.

Sallie bid goodbye, with Corey following suit, and they began to walk down the pavement. Both said nothing, knowing that Mr. Knight and Sam were watching them as they walked down, waiting for the initial moment where the front door closed.

And then they heard it shutting, locking.

Sallie looked back, seeing that the door was closed, and she giggled, jumping in front of Corey, his hands tucked into his pockets, watching her.

“Keeee! They fell for it! They fell for it!” She brimmed with joy, her eyes wide with elation as her little boots tapped on the pavement in a little jig. “I can’t believe it!”

“I’m still gonna keep you safe.” Corey reminded her, pleased to see her finally expressing happiness. It made his life a little more better. “You’re gonna have the best time of your life, Sal. I promise you.”

Sallie nodded, and then realised she was still hugging his hoodie and beanie.

“Oh.” She squeaked, holding it up to Corey. “Your things, sorry I kept them for so long. I…sorta forgot.”

“Pfft, it’s okay.” Corey grabbed onto his beanie and placed it on his head, adjusting it. He really suited it. And when he took the hoodie, he eyed Sallie up and down. “Uhh…where’s your jacket?”

Sallie’s smile faltered slightly.

“I…um…forgot.”

“Dickhead.” And he held the hoodie back to her. “Wear this tonight. _Stairways_ is gonna be hot, so when you leave tonight, you’ll be freezing your tits off.”

Shyly taking the hoodie, she looked at him.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.” Corey smiled lightly.

And with that, Sallie finally had this moment. She didn’t ever try to wear it, because she sensed that Corey would have known when he got it back, and it would freak him out. But now he was giving her permission to wear it. She scrambled the hoodie over her head, feeding her arms through the sleeves and when she was completely dressed in it, Corey was howling. “Fuck me! It looks so stupid on you!” He joked, amused how huge the thing looked on her. It was purposely bigger and baggy on him, so when a smaller, female frame wore it, it was so heartbreakingly cute. The hoodie reached to her knees, the sleeves comically long on her, her hands disappearing in the sleeves.

Sallie looked at her long sleeves and flapped them in the air.

“I could fly with this!” She grinned, giggling.

“If I ever lose you, I’ll ask someone if they’ve seen a small gremlin in a black hoodie that looks like a fucking curtain on her.”

“Just shout _Virgin Airlines_ and I’ll fly to you.”

Corey halted now, his laugh uncontrollable, bursting and howling to the evening sky. He threw his head back and kept laughing, which was contagious, and even Sallie started to have a laughing fit, his laugh making her feel so happy.

They continued to laugh in the street, slowly calming down. And when Corey and Sallie looked at each other, their smiles struggled, tightening, suppressing a laugh, and couldn’t hold it anymore, slapping their hands on their legs and stamping their feet on the floor.

Sallie and Corey couldn’t stop laughing, and neither of them understood why.

But it was well needed. And they both loved it.

Corey and Sallie exchanged tired smiles after their laughing fits, and both knew who they were looking at.

Their best friend.


	12. Stairways to Heaven

The rock club, _Stairways,_ was in the centre of Des Moines, Iowa.

Already, there was a queue standing outside, a gathering of fellow black-clad rockers waiting to be accepted entrance.

Sallie stood still, taking in the moment, her eyes regarding the building.

She had seen it many times during her little bus-trip to work, but to appreciate it, at night and _alive_ , she felt a rush of excitement coming to her.

It was a tall, narrow building, consisting of three floors. Its walls were black, a spray-painted design over it of a grey staircase, the initials **_SW_** over it, nestled between red and orange flames. The front double doors were made of factory steel, a bulky bouncer with long black hair and a goatee stood before it, waiting for the club to be officially opened to the public. He was, perhaps, six to seven feet tall, incredibly built and intimidating. His black brows furrowed, strong eyes surveyed his surrounding, protecting his clients and friends.

On the door, there was a poster for the live band that night. A band called _Slipknot_.

Corey watched her stare in glee, and he smiled faintly. The simplest of things pleased this woman, and he liked it. Like he was showing a foreigner the way of his life, and something about it was just fun. To see that glee in her eyes.

As they approached the queue, a few members looked up and saw Corey, waving and high-fiving him.

“Hey Corey, my man!” One man shouted, holding his fist out and Corey bumped his fist against it.

“Hey dude!” He greeted, walking as Sallie followed him, looking at the strangers, and they all smiled back. There was such a welcoming vibe to this place already. Sallie had no idea who they were, but they gave her a respect that she had never felt before. It was obvious she was new, and the club goers greeted her politely, with smiles and nods.

“Who’s the new face?” A woman with shocking blue hair asked Corey, smiling fondly at Sallie. There were never enough women in this place, so it was always a pleasure to see another one.

“This is Sallie.” Corey grinned, pulling Sallie into a hug against him with one arm. “She’s my little buddy. First night here.”

“Oh my god!” The woman piped up, grinning as she leaned over the ribbon of the divider between them, separating the queue from the public. “You’re gonna _love_ it here!”

Sallie giggled softly, feeling taken back by the kindness from all these strangers. Sweating, becoming hot-

She began to remove the hoodie, tying it around her waist, and revealed her shirt.

“Yo, she has good taste in music too!” Another man boomed down the line, holding his hand up, his little finger and index finger up, the rest held down, forming devil horns. “Fucking _Metallica_ , dude!”

And Sallie felt the urgency to reflect it back. She did so, for the very first time, and the rockers roared in welcome, hailing her as if she was a champion. Sallie’s heart was pounding frantically, her smile blossoming on her face, and she was unable to stop it. It was beginning to hurt her.

“You fucking rock dude!” Another woman screamed over the cries of union.

“Welcome to the family!”

Sallie blushed madly, pressing herself against Corey, and her moment of fame was quickly hushed when Corey calmed the excited rockers, approaching the back of the queue.

They stood there and waited. Luckily, they didn’t have to wait long.

A cheer rose from the line ahead when the doors opened, and the bouncer welcomed each member pleasantly. The older generation recognised these types of people, and always assumed them as devil worshippers, Satanists, killers, rapists, cruel people…

They were wrong. So _fucking_ wrong.

These were the sweetest fucking people Sallie had ever met, and for the first time, she dropped her guard completely.

Taking her phone out, Corey watched as Sallie texted her dad:

**I’m here, safe. X**

And the pair shared a smirk. They weren’t lying.

By the time Corey and Sallie reached the bouncer, he halted them.

“How old are you?” The bouncer asked, cocking a brow, his tone gentle.

“Ha! I’m 20 years old.” Sallie burst out in surprise, looking at Corey. But a fear underlined her voice, nervous about the sudden question. If the bouncer didn’t believe her…

“It’s okay, TORQUE. She’s with me. She’s the Sallie I was talking about to you.”

The bouncer, known as TORQUE, blinked, his eyes widening.

“Oh! Holy fuck!” TORQUE chuckled, shaking his head. “I’m sorry. You look like fucking 15!”

“Yeah, I get that a lot.” Sallie giggled softly, trying to calm down. “I’ll be 21 on Halloween.”

Corey faced her, blinking.

“Wah? Really?!”

Sallie nodded, proudly. TORQUE stood there, arms folded as he eyed the woman up and down, and grinned.

“She’s pretty fucking hot, Corey.” Sallie flinched back in shyness, her face blushing a brilliant red. “Can I have her?”

“Dude, she’s not for fucking sale!” Corey laughed, pulling Sallie against him again, noticing her wariness. “Just let her have a good night, she hasn’t been here before.”

TORQUE nodded, his strong blue eyes looking down at Sallie.

“You have any problems, you talk to me, alright, dollface?”

Sallie nodded, and when TORQUE stepped to the side, he pointed to the doorway with his thumbs. “Go on, you two. Be safe and have fun.”

Corey took the lead, walking into a black, lightless corridor that led them to steely stairs. Above the stairways was a shred of red light. Music rumbled above them, the bass seeping through the floor and walls.

“This is fucking heaven!” Sallie beamed, jigging with excitement.

Corey grinned, stopping by the stairs and faced her.

“I know, right? A Stairways to fucking Heaven.” He held his hand out, inviting Sallie to the stairs. And Sallie gladly took it.

* * *

The first floor was a seating area, with a large bar that glowed in reds and neon pinks. Many of the rockers went to this floor first, ordering fries and drinks for their night ahead, but Corey wasn’t interested there. He walked Sallie up to the second top floor, where the _real_ magic happened.

When they reached it, Sallie looked around, observing her new surroundings. Rock music was blaring all around her ears, the smell of cooked food from the bar downstairs came to her, the air humid yet comforting. All around them were black. The centre had a wooden dancefloor, in which many groups of friends gathered in circles, talking and relaxing, slightly bobbing their heads to the music. Men with long hair and women with colourful hairs gathered and mingled, like a family reunion. Friends patted each other’s backs and women hugged and screamed when their female friends found each other. At the very back was a small stage, music equipment positioned there, ready for the live music to commence tonight, with two towering speakers on both side of the stage, massive like pillars.

Lights bounced and flicked around, shining in the room along with the thrashing music.

Sallie felt an absolute sense of belonging here.

“This is amazing!” Sallie shouted to Corey; her voice easily drowned by the music. Corey leaned over, barely able to hear her, but he knew what she said.

“I know, right?” He nudged her. “You wanna drink?” He pointed at the bar, and Sallie hesitated.

“Water, please.”

Corey nodded. He didn’t pressure her in any alcoholic drinks. He knew her hatred for the things, the very reason why her mother wasn’t here, and that she didn’t drink the stuff. So, he was understanding and knew. Corey walked towards the bar, and Sallie was about to follow him, but she was still awe-stricken by the nightclub. It was busy yet comfortable, the tight building forcing the rockers to mingle and mix.

A roar from a group of friends boomed over the music, and Sallie turned to see another man running to his friends, meeting up, his lime-green mohawk illuminate in the dim lighting. Sallie smiled fondly at the scene, shyly taking a step inside this magical world, her whole mind awe-struck by it all. It was like a completely different world, groups of people with different loves for metal and rocks, but like family, they all accepted and loved one another. Even strangers offered helping hands and hugs to each other. At the end of the day, they were all in this together.

Sallie felt a hand on her shoulder, and she turned around to expect Corey there, but her face blanched when she saw the face of Jay.

“Heeeeey, didn’t know you came here!” Jay smirked, already holding his arm over her shoulder, pulling her into a tight hug against him. Sallie shifted uncomfortably, pulling her head away from his face instinctively. “What are _you_ doing here?”

Sallie babbled, stumbling on her words.

“I…I’m here with a friend.”

“That’s good.” Jay grinned, his lips smirking through his beard. He had grown his goatee out, composed in a full beard now. He eyed Sallie up and down, looking at her breasts. Sallie saw his eyes gorging at them, and she felt even more awkward, too frightened to move. “Nice shirt.” He added, his words flirtatiously.

Sallie’s legs instinctively jittered, shaking on the floor, her posture tight and unwilling as she watched him. Was he off Jodie or something? Or was this normal for someone like him?

Sallie swallowed hard.

“Thanks…” She barely managed to say.

Jay leaned closer to Sallie, and for a heart-stopping moment, Sallie waited for him to kiss her suddenly. Thankfully, he didn’t, but leaned to her ear.

“You thought about what I offered?”

“No.” Sallie blurted out to Jay’s dismay, and she felt his smile tighten.

“That’s okay,” His deep voice dipped in her ear, making her feel trapped. “That offer still stands.”

“N-No. I’m not interested.”

“But I-” Jay stopped, and suddenly lurched away from Sallie, his arms removed, freeing Sallie from his intimidating grasp when he saw Corey unexpectedly standing beside her, paper cups in both hands. “Ahh, Corey, dude!” Jay beamed, completely ignoring Sallie now. But her shoulders slowly dropped, easing thanks to the presence of Corey, and she tucked herself behind him, stepping away from Jay. Corey noticed this and reflected a charming grin.

“Hey, Jay! Nice to see you here, buddy!” He held the cup of water for Sallie, and she took it, furiously drinking it. “Wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

“I wanted to see _Slipknot_. Band sounds badass!” Jay piped up, and Corey nodded. The two men began talking about the live band, and Sallie remained tucked away, trying to calm her nerves after that moment.

_If Jay touches me like that again, I’m gonna fucking throttle him…_

But Sallie was too kind. Despite her awful temper, her terrible thoughts and supressed anger, she didn’t have the _heart_ to hurt anyone…

Not yet.

Until that heart cracked, she was forever forgiving.

“I’ll catch you later then.” Jay grinned, saluting Corey and looked at Sallie, smiling back at her delightfully and walked away, vanishing into the pit of black clothed bodies.

Corey slowly turned, seeing Sallie tucked behind him.

“You okay?”

Sallie looked up, holding her empty cup, which shook in both of her hands.

“I…” She looked at where Jay was gone, making sure he was far away. She saw him talking to another man, laughing and joking, minding his own business. “I don’t like him…”

“Oh?” Corey cocked a brow, a smirk tugging at the end of his lips. “You… _like like_ him?”

“No. I don’t like him at all.” Sallie insisted, shaking her head. “He’s so…touchy. I’m…he makes me uncomfortable.”

Corey’s smirk dropped, sensing the fear in her tone.

“He sorta gets like that with the women. But don’t worry. He’s harmless.” Corey reassured, though it didn’t convince Sallie. There was something about Jay that made her uneasy, like he could never be trusted. If Corey wasn’t there at that moment, Sallie was certain Jay would have touched her inappropriately.

The deepened bass of the music rumbled through Sallie’s boots, rippling through her legs and body, and she tried to ease.

“Corey!” Another voice called, making both Sallie and Corey turn around. Approaching him was a rather broad man, somewhat large but not fat. Big built, and probably a brilliant football player. Sallie smiled faintly to herself with the thought that he would probably give the best hugs due to his size. His hair was a fiery ginger-red, so vibrant, and he had a brilliant bushy beard. All in black, icy-blue eyes regarded Corey with a sense of deep companionship, and when he grabbed Corey’s hand in a manly handshake before proceeding in hugging one another with a pat on their backs, Sallie realised who he was.

“Sal,” Corey said, turning and holding a hand to the man. “This is Shawn.” Corey faced Shawn, who was already holding his hand out to Sallie. “Shawn. This is Sallie.”

“Nice to meet you, Sallie.” Shawn smiled, holding her small hand and shook it firmly. “Feel free to call me Clown.”

“Clown?” Sallie asked, her smile one of politeness and bemusement. Corey nodded.

“He’s the guy with the band. Slipknot.”

“Yeah, that’s the one.” Shawn smiled broadly. “I wear a clown mask while on stage. We all wear masks.”

“Wow,” Sallie gasped, astounded. “That’s…a really fucking unique idea. I love it!” Sallie beamed, looking at the stage and back at Shawn. “I can’t wait to see you guys perform.”

Shawn was pleased to hear that, touched. She was like a little dedicated fan that stuck with them since the beginning, even if this was her first live show.

“Hope you do like it.” His smile dropped slightly. “Our singer…he’s been a bit shitty with us lately.” He murmured softly, leaning down to the tiny woman. “Can you sing?” He was half-joking, but Sallie had already blurted out.

“I love singing!” And then horror scribbled on her face when Shawn blinked. She covered her mouth.

Though her shocked reaction amused the man.

“It’s okay. May consider a female vocalist after this.” He turned to Corey, his smile tired. “Been wanting to ask you about the band, dude.” Shawn shifted his weight onto his other foot, hands tucking into his pocket. “Been…thinking if you could join us? Be our new vocalist? Dirtbag was thinking of quitting.”

Corey blinked, scoffing and laugh as he looked at Sallie awkwardly, and back at Shawn.

“I mean…”

“Just…watch this show first. See how you feel and let me know after the show.” Shawn insisted, his hands opened in offering. Corey took a deep sigh, nodding.

“Fine, fine.” Corey replied, nudging Sallie. “She’s still on offer.” He chuckled, and Sallie smiled softly, shaking his head at his daft gesture.

“We’re gonna be ready in 10 minutes.” Shawn said, folding his arms over his belly. “You better be ready for the fucking moshpits and headbanging.”

“Oh, we will!” Corey grinned, and Shawn disappeared in the crowd. Which was good, because-

“What’s…a moshpit?”

Corey’s head snapped around at Sallie in horror.

“You don’t know what a moshpit is?!”

Sallie shook her head in shame.

“No…”

And then Corey grinned darkly.

“Babe, I’m gonna give you a fucking grand tour in the nightlife of _Stairways_.”


	13. Slipknot

Band members were approaching the stage at this point, and Sallie was intrigued, watching them. She seemed to be the only one watching them, seeing their black boiler-suits and masked faces. She looked up and saw the _Rudel_ Clown Masked figure, knowing it was Shawn. He stalled, seeing Sallie watching from the front as everyone else around her, including Corey were gathering and talking to each other. The Clown tilted his head at Sallie, and for a pressing moment, Sallie thought she was staring at someone completely different.

Then he lifted a hand, and waved at her creepily, playing along with his stage-character.

That strangely amused Sallie. She laughed and waved back at him. The Clown on stage leapt towards Sallie and squatted before her. At this point now, the waiting headbangers near the front looked at the scene. A few girls, evidently terrified of clowns, screamed and backed away. But Sallie was unfazed, smiling like a _fucking_ idiot as the Clown leaned down to her, hands on his knees, and perched at the front of the stage, staring back at her. Sallie played along, staring back at Clown, pulling an expression of mock-anger, and the two rockers had a stare down. A few bystanders were laughing at the scene in genuine amusement.

“You better have a great time, Sal.” The Clown spoke, his grinning lips unmoved, but his mask shifted slightly as he spoke, and Sallie nodded.

“I will!”

And with that, the Clown stepped back, approaching his unique drum-set. Sallie watched. He wasn’t the drummer. He was a Percussionist, with a make-shift drum and a pair of sticks ready. This was different, and it captivated Sallie.

Making sure she wasn’t alone, she glanced at the corner of her eyes to see Corey talking to a few rockers further ahead. It was okay though, Sallie felt safe being near the stage, with Shawn watching her. Something told her that he was instinctively protecting her, giving Corey space.

Finally, a man approached the stage, and the fellow rockers roared in approval, sensing that the band was about to start.

But something _really_ bothered Sallie about the man. Her brows furrowed as a shirtless man approached the stage, black electric tape attached over his face in a form of a cross, mirroring the pattern of electric tape on his chest, wearing some sort of animal fur skirt that looked like ancient Viking attire.

The man snatched the microphone and turned to the waiting crowd.

“You fuckers ready to rock?!”

Sallie winced at the shriek suddenly, her eyes hardening in disappointment and frustration when Jay stood there.

_Why did he had to fucking ruin this?_

_Then again, Shawn mentioned about replacing their vocalist…_

Sallie subconsciously looked at Corey, who was further ahead and hollered in unison with the crowd, holding a pint up in the air, cigarette in his mouth. Corey caught Sallie glancing and he smiled back, almost reassuringly that he was nearby, and simply catching up with old friends. Giving Corey a brief smile, she turned back to the stage.

The drummer had a blank, white mask, emotionless and eerie, his long brown hair draping down. There was a tall guitarist, wearing a metallic mask that reminded Sallie of primeval knights, a grille over his fearsome markings. Beside him was the bassist, a rubber-faced pig with a lock tied at his nose, like a fanciful nose piercing, and every time he turned his head, it would jangle against his rubber nose.

Their first song, as Jay announced as _Tattered and Torn_ , began to play and the band promptly got into character, headbanging furiously as the music began. Sallie was swept away by the sheer power behind the music, how the towering speakers took the whole room by storm, and everyone was screaming in joy, devil-horns held in the air, bodies bouncing and dancing to the music, which was naturally aggressive and harsh. Just… _perfect._

The music was loud, extraordinarily loud, the heaviness of the bass rumbling through Sallie’s feet and teeth, but she was in heaven. Live Music…it felt so much better compared to the CDs she listened to. Her eyes widened in elation as she listened while Jay was walking around the front, mentally preparing himself for the song.

During midway of the song, Sallie looked up at Shawn, his arms madly beating at the drum in tune with their music. He then looked at Sallie and pointed… _behind_ her.

He was showing her something.

Sallie turned back, and her heart leapt when she saw people scrambling at one another, pushing and shoving, many bodies tossing against the circle that held the pit of moshing bodies-

_Moshpit…_

Suddenly, it made sense. Instinctively, she stepped back, watching in interest how the rockers were aimlessly pushing and barging into one another to the anger of the music. But every one of them was _smiling_ , laughing. _Enjoying_ the experience.

It actually looked _fun_.

Suddenly, Corey was beside her.

“That,” He pointed with his finger, still holding his paper cup. “That is a mosh-pit!”

“Looks fun!” Sallie shouted over the music, smiling back at Corey, just glad he came back to her.

“I know. Right?” He lowered himself down, and Sallie felt his hand rubbing her back, ever so gently, and she would have shivered until she felt Corey aggressively push her into the circle.

She spun, halted, and her eyes widened in horror to realise she was in the centre of the mosh-pit. No one stopped, and already her body was collided against a woman, who knocked her into another man, throwing her against the circle that surrounded them, and even the hands eagerly reached for her and spun her around, pushing her back.

Sallie’s legs were simply following, stumbling but always seemingly catching themselves. Her eyes spinning as the room shot around frantically, her vision blurred. But she…found it so exhilarating, such fun. It was like a makeshift fairground ride, and the rockers that stood around in the circle were the walls, encouraging the aggression of the mosh-pit.

Sallie burst out laughing, now realising what she was supposed to do, throwing herself with the help of other rockers pushing and throwing her, and she shoved into another woman, who exchanged a smile and the pair reflected one another, lunged at the circle. Sallie fell slightly, almost losing her footing, and crashed into Corey’s arm.

For a moment, they looked at each other, and exchanged an endearing smile.

_Thank you._

Corey read her expression, and with a graceful smirk, he threw Sallie into the mosh-pit with all his strength, the music picking up, the guitar rift and drum solos intensifying.

Then, Sallie crashed into a bodybuilder, his muscle mass and incredible height overpowering her, so when the pair pushed into one another, Sallie’s boots finally lost it, and she fell. Her smile dropped immediately as she collapsed onto the floor, and screamed, impulsively covering her face from the stampede of feet with her arms.

But that was when she realised what the circle was _originally_ for. They were the force to help keep the mosh-pit going, but they were _also_ the rescue team. The mosh-pit had gotten more vigorous, and when that happened, the smallest rockers would often lose their stance and fall.

A collection of hands and arms instantly grabbed onto Sallie and pulled her out of the mosh-pit swiftly quicker than she could register, and then suddenly, she was safe.

“You okay, dude?” A red-haired man asked with a calm smile, and he and his friends pulled Sallie onto her feet.

Sallie smiled in relief.

“I’m good, thank you!” She beamed, her smile hurting her mouth. “I wanna go in again!”

The man exchanged a smirk with his friends, and all together, grabbing her arms, they practically threw her into the mosh-pit.

Corey watched from the circle, seeing the little woman hysterically knocking and shoving into the other moshing bodies, her smile so bright, so content, so _happy_ …

This is what he wanted. He wanted to show Sallie the beauty of this world.

And when Sallie smiled…she was actually quite pretty.

The mosh-pit soon dispersed, and Sallie reached Corey again, falling into his arms and she was shaking uncontrollably with such anticipation. Corey held her, smirking cockily.

“Had fun?”

“I fucking _loved_ it! You should join next time!” Sallie grinned, holding at his arms and looked up to him with such adoration in her eyes. She was like a little child, and it lifted Corey’s weary spirits up.

“The next one, maybe.”

A few more songs were played, a couple named as _Only One_ and the famous _Slipknot_ song, the title of the song now replacing their band name and became final.

During the night, Corey was talking to a few more friends, introducing them to Sallie who seemed very intrigued with the new face, her accent raising a lot of questions that Sallie was used to. It was a lot of fun, as if she was a celebrity and the paparazzi wanted her attention. Of course, it was the presence of Corey that gave her such fame. Everyone _knew_ Corey, he was such a regular at this place, a friend with everyone.

Sallie started to notice how much louder Corey was getting, and how his drink never seemed to be empty, never seemed to stop, yet she kept seeing him chugging it down like water. He was becoming a bit comical, his jokes rude and dirty, loud and obnoxious. Though Sallie liked it that Corey was becoming so laidback right now. He dismissed himself to the bathroom and walked awkwardly away, leaving Sallie with the group of new friends she just met. She watched him carefully, but when he was safely in the men’s toilets, she turned back to the new faces and smiled. She felt safe here, and knew Corey would be too.

Sallie hadn’t hugged so much in her life. Female punk-rockers and heavy metalists were wrapping their arms around her, holding the small woman and they all took photos with their cameras. This was a family that Sallie never knew she had until now, and it was thanks to Corey-

Her eyes looked around for the dreadlocked moron, spying him and hoping to just be with him again. She wanted to ask more about the band, _Slipknot_ , and when she saw him, she couldn’t stop smiling. This very man bringing her such a joy that she had thought she lost and would never _ever_ get it back. She had never felt so alive. For the first time since her mother’s death, Sallie felt good. She felt so happy to be here, living the moment.

_It’s so good to be alive…_

Sallie politely dismissed herself, walking across the dancefloor. She saw the Clown and Pig-Faced man, and both waved at her during a minor break of their band session. But then her boots halted, staggering, pulling herself back. Sallie recoiled back slightly when she saw Corey holding onto a woman, a woman with bright red hair-

_Jodie._

Suddenly feeling a pang of hurt, Sallie returned back to the other side of the room, avoiding Corey and that _bitch_ -

The sight of her, the reminder of her existence, triggered that awful feral sense of _raw hate_. It was just as bad as the hate she felt for her stepmother, but while she was a lost cause, Corey was…

Corey was _precious_ to her…

“Okay gang…” Jay spoke to the microphone over the crowd. “One more song for the night. Gotta show this one off. One of my favourites…”

Jay’s words didn’t come through Sallie’s head. His voice a blur, but the music seemed to have lifted out of her dark place, bringing her higher and higher…

To a far higher state of _hate._

An alien, inhuman sensation of loathing she had never felt. Her mind becoming cold and blank.

This new raw emotion _scared_ her…

In the corner of the room, she watched through the crowd how Corey cradled his girlfriend’s head, his fingers shaking through her red hair. She didn’t seem interested, though she had a flirty glint as she looked at him, and Corey sloppily kissed her.

He was evidently drunk, and that stung Sallie more. She felt the need to go to him, almost like a lost cat, but the presence of that awful woman staled her motivation. She felt as if she couldn’t go to him now, that she had no permission of being near her friend, because his best thing in life was right there.

Immediately, the masked-drummer began thrashing against the drums, guitars and bass slowly followed.

“ _Cycle of life and death supposedly/ goes 'round and 'round yet it stops with me/_

 _Glorious hunter of my faith I have sinned/Killers are quiet like the breath of the wind_ …”

Jay began to sing, and Sallie had to admit, the savage low growl of his voice, which was surprisingly calm, suited the serene backing of the drums and bass. There was something almost heart-breaking about this song.

“ _Filling the shadows with forms of my own/Raised by kindred of Get I was born/_

 _Abomination world in disarray/Killers are quiet when they seek the vitae_ …”

Sallie’s eyes locked onto the woman, her primal instincts taking over her, and unexpectedly blinded to everything, the music the only language she can understand, her eyes cruelly targeted the red-haired woman.

Jodie giggled against Corey’s lips, pushing her finger against his lips to stop him from kissing, bringing him to the plush sofas that were vacant. She sat on his lap, and whispered sweet nothings to him, who lewdly grinned, ridiculously biting his lower lip and giving her a charming, silly dirty look.

Sallie’s heart began to bleed more, feeling a blackness seeping inside of her, the poison of her fury stinging her more and more, making her body feel hot. Her hands were wringing at the hoodie sleeves that were tied around her.

_Be a bitch…be a bitch to her…_

_And hurt Corey?!_

_You want to hurt HER!_

Untying the hoodie, Sallie unravelled it slowly and began to put it back on, almost silently claiming ownership of a hoodie that belonged to _Jodie’s_ boyfriend. They may not have a romantic relationship, and despite Sallie’s unrequited attraction to Corey, he was her very _best friend_ , and no one fucking hurts her ray of fucking sunshine!

The heat inside the hoodie immediately engulf her, and she felt it so passionately, like the ignition inside of her chest was spreading, like wildfire, and she was finding it hard to control this writhing temper. Her lungs burned, tightening. It was roaming now, forever onwards, no control behind it anymore, and the leashes had snapped so suddenly without her realising.

Her hands clenched hard, _so hard_ , her nails biting into the palm of her hand and the pain only amplified her anger. Sallie was now physically shaking with supressed wrath, finding it difficult to hold back.

Her mind was a white fuzz of nothingness, but she knew, through savage instincts, what she wanted to do.

With predatorial eyes, Sallie watched from the darkness as Jodie kissed Corey on the forehead, who was now lounging on the sofa with his eyes closed, incredibly relaxed. Jodie walked to the bar, and Sallie _knew_ she was disgusted at the clothes she wore, but her expression was still. Only an icy menace remained there.

Jodie wore a skin-tight black dress, her asscheeks pressed against it so hard, it would be pointless to wear. So high, revealing the length of her pale legs, fishnet tights tattered and pulled on purpose, possibly due to some sex act between her and Corey-

That flickering thought threw Sallie in with a force of ferocity that she straightened quickly. Tucked behind the speakers, no one seemed to notice the small woman becoming darker, and darker and darker…

_Silent._

“ _Reflection beckons a portal shard/Spiritual quest I must stay in guard_

 _Stepping sideways between worlds I shift/Killers are quiet when they are born with the gift_ …”

“Killers are quiet…” Sallie murmured to herself, the only words that stuck to her. She was no longer in control, and she observed Jodie from afar, seeing the woman leaning at the bar, her breasts practically popping out from her crop _Slayer_ shirt. Just as she ordered a drink, a man shuffled beside her. Sallie watched, still, seeing the rockers getting in her way and blocked Jodie and this stranger. Yet she remained frozen, unmoved, and the rockers seemed to have parted by the will of her dangerous thoughts. The little Brit saw the man cupping Jodie’s ass-cheek, his finger digging into the plump goodness so eagerly, his groin pushed against her legs.

Sallie’s breathing became raggedy, her teeth chattering inside of her mouth, gritting hard, the teeth scraping cruelly, her fingers cold.

Her eyes slid coldly onto Corey, following Jodie’s line of sight, and found the poor man passed out on the sofa.

And when her eyes looked back at Jodie, she was grabbing the man’s hand and pulling him to the bathroom, looking back at Corey to make sure he wasn’t watching.

That _hurt_ Sallie.

Finally, Sallie felt something _terrible_ inside of her. A god-awful consciousness that Sallie knew was a danger to Jodie and anyone who stopped her, a threat that she could no longer have control, but the image of a devastated Corey was destroying her, and she was not going to let this cunt ruin and abuse him anymore.

This world had finally broken her.

That was when Sallie felt her heart break, and crack, and suddenly-

Sallie snapped.


	14. Killers are Quiet

Jodie and her friend, Ciaran, hurried into the bathroom, giggling. Already high off alcohol, Jodie pulled Ciaran to the corner of the small toilets. Luckily, they were empty, everyone either too intoxicated or having too much fun with their friends.

A quickie was possible!

Jodie giggled sweetly, pulling at Ciaran’s shirt and bringing him closer to her, her back pressed against the wall as she smiled flirtatiously at him, her face close to his.

“Ohh, I wanna do bad things to you…” Ciaran groaned lowly, his forehead pressing against hers. “You sure your piss-excuse for a boyfriend doesn’t mind?”

“He doesn’t fucking care.” Jodie cooed back, her fingers running up his neck and pressed his lips there, her white teeth pinching at his flesh teasingly, causing the man to shiver in delight.

“Fuck, Jodie…” He grabbed the beautiful woman’s skirt and pulled it up frantically, revealing her nude pussy. She purposely didn’t wear panties that night. It was simply quicker to get to the action.

“C’mon,” Jodie groaned seductively, her eyes ready and impatient. “Fuck me.”

“I wouldn’t fucking try it…”

Like cold water thrown onto the rowdy pair, both turned around immediately to see Sallie standing by the door. Her shoulders tight, hands balled, her small body shook hard.

A thick strand of hair was hanging over her features, strangely making her look like a psychopath in one of those horror movies.

But her eyes didn’t expression much. Glacial and blank.

Though there was a hostile air surrounding the small woman.

Jodie scoffed, rolling her eyes as she snarled.

“Look, bitch, get out of my business!” Jodie snapped, her hands running through Ciaran’s hair. “Unless…” A gross sneer sprawled on her painted black lips. “You _wanna_ join? I’m sure Ciaran doesn’t mind a threesome.”

Ciaran turned back to Sallie, his eyebrows wiggling, beckoning her to the temptation.

But Sallie’s mind had blocked out all wants and needs.

Just this dangerous mission to make Jodie _suffer_.

“Why do you persist in doing this?” Sallie said slowly, her voice low and full of menace. “Why do you proceed to cheat on Corey?”

“Because Corey can’t live without me!” Jodie scorned, a proud tone to her voice. “He is mine, and my little pet! When he’s fucking wasted, he’s not a man. He doesn’t function as a fucking human, and that’s when he becomes useless to me.”

“Why not break up with him?” Sallie’s interrogation was hostile, but the eerie calmness to her voice was what was most unsettling.

“Because I like the attention from him.” Jodie shot back, pulling Ciaran closer, his face pressed against her neck, and he proceeded in kissing her neck, his hands exploring her thighs. “I love him.”

“You…” Sallie stalled; the words barely able to leave her clenched throat. “You _don’t_ fucking love him…”

Jodie pushed Ciaran away from her neck, shooting Sallie a poisonous glare, and it mirrored her stepmother’s scowls.

She was staring back at another Sam.

Sallie’s attention expanded; her focus heightened. And it was almost as if she felt her pupils dinted in absolute focus…

Behind the door, the music was muffled, but she _felt_ it.

“Are you asking for a fucking fight?! You cheeky fucking bitch! If you think Corey wants you, then you’re wrong! He doesn’t fucking like you! He thinks you’re a joke!” Jodie now screamed, her eyes fiery. “I’ll-!“

The insults didn’t come through Sallie. Instead she heard the roars from the song outside the bathroom, the same shrieks that her heart screamed:

“ ** _Beautiful Anguish cast out by my race/Now one that's Ageless I save my own face!_**

 ** _I write my own laws with Death I break bread/Killers are quiet when they come from my head!_** ”

And just like that, before Sallie could even register, she was suddenly pushed up against Jodie’s body, feeling her small, frail slim body against her own, crushing her against the wall. She threw herself at Jodie with a force that choked the air out of her lungs, her hand latching onto Jodie’s pretty face, and _squeezed._

Ciaran reacted immediately when Sallie forced Jodie against the wall at a frightening speed, the music intense and animalistic. He snatched at Sallie’s shoulders, and the moment he touched her, Sallie reacted. With a scream now, Sallie threw her shoulder back, brutally throwing the man into the frame of the cubical viciously, hurting his back directly with the horrifying assault, and he stumbled back into the cubical.

Such atrocious strength for a tiny woman!

“ _Corey is a beautiful man! A fucking beautiful man and you’re fucking ruining him!_ ” Sallie finally screamed, her voice tattered against the force of her scream, her eyes full of white-hot wrath, pointed and raw, saliva sprayed over Jodie’s face as she shrieked violently at her. “ _I’ll end you!_ ”

Sallie’s other hand reached and grasped onto Jodie’s red locks and pulled, both hands clutching onto her skull.

Jodie screamed in anguish, her hands reaching at Sallie’s face and began to scratch at her, flailing her arms, protecting herself from the blinded woman. But Sallie was on her adrenaline rush now, feeling no pain or disturbance. Just absorbed on her mission.

_Make. Jodie. Fucking. SUFFER._

“Corey is a fucking waste of space!” Jodie squealed back, feeling Sallie’s nail puncturing her perfect skin.

_Break her flesh. Break her fucking face!_

Then Jodie smiled against Sallie’s grasp, blood seeping through her lips, mocking the little woman. “You won’t have a chance with him, babe! Besides, Corey could fucking drop dead now, and I wouldn’t fucking care!”

A battle-cry left Sallie, a howl of intense hate, her other hand snatching at Jodie’s right ear, and she ragged at it, attempting to rip the poor woman’s ear off her skull, the animalistic intention in ending this woman’s life was tilting over the edge. Soon, Sallie would forget everything-

With all of her strength, Sallie swung Jodie into the cubicles, throwing her model body against the doorframe, and Jodie let out a blood-curling squeal of agony, feeling Sallie yanking her back and only to throw her against it again, battering the flailing woman against the cubical, bruising her bones, shattering her legs, breaking her body.

Blood began to seep onto the cubical door as Sallie clutched onto Jodie’s skull and pummelled it severely at the door-

“ _Sallie!_ ”

Suddenly, the world came into focus, and Sallie halted, the word chilling her from primal fear. She immediately dropped Jodie onto the floor, collapsing her against Ciaran, who was staring up at the tiny woman in mute-horror, unable to believe the sheer strength he witnessed.

Slowly, shakily, Sallie slowly turned around, and standing by the door was Corey. Her heart dropped sickeningly.

Behind him was the masked Clown, his forever-smiling face watching back at her, but Sallie sensed a terrible sinking feeling. She waited for Corey’s verdict on the situation, the threat of tears in being caught being this _monster_ brimming her lashes.

Corey watched coldly at the three of them, his dreadlocks looming over his brilliant blue eyes. He seemed to have sobered slightly from the shock of what Shawn brought him into.

And with a long, shuddering breath, Corey spoke:

“Leave Jodie alone, she isn’t worth it. I now know the truth.” His eyes grimly glanced at Jodie, who sat on the floor with her thighs opened, presenting the world the one thing Corey prayed only he knew. Though now it seems like everyone was getting a piece of pussy that he believed was just his.

From the rumours and warnings, Corey had been proven wrong, all this time, a fucking fool for trying to believe in the good of someone. Jodie had proved herself to Corey who she really was, and if it wasn’t for Sallie’s sudden change of character to raise suspicions with Shawn…

Corey hung his head, his eyes still hard on the three of them before he turned and left the scene. Shawn stood there, hesitantly, and he looked at Sallie, as if pleading her to come with them.

Jodie shifted, and that just set off another domino effect on Sallie. Hand clenched, Sallie faced Jodie and finally punched her fist into the pretty woman’s face, feeling the brutality of bone clashing bone, her knuckles scraping at her teeth, and finally, Sallie ruined her pretty face, blood and tears and wounds marked it.

Her knuckles now bruised and bloodied, Sallie did what she had always wanted to do to Jodie since the first day she met her.

And gave her the middle finger.

“Fuck you, cunt!”

That was it. The deed was done, and Sallie felt bewildered, blinking as she resumed back to the little friendly Brit everyone had assumed she was. For a time, she didn’t know what had happened for she was blinded with a hateful rage she had never felt before. The demon was tucked away inside of her, and just like that, the darkness left Sallie’s features.

Only to be replaced with horror.

“ _Corey!_ ” Sallie cried out in woe, hurrying out with Shawn taking her arm, and left the sleazy couple in the bathroom to collect themselves from the moment.

None of them had expected Sallie to turn like that. No one.


	15. PEOPLE = SHIT

Her knuckles began to sting already, trembling as she followed Shawn out, her eyes scanning through the scene. Luckily, the fellow rockers were too drunk and merry to know what had happened, and Sallie began to panic. She looked around frantically, spinning, her eyes blurred with tears, and the more she looked, the more lost she was, the more she began to dread. Blood was seeping through her torn flesh, knuckles white and red.

“Clown! Where’s Corey?! Where’s Corey?! I fucking _lost_ him!” The tremendous fear and emotions suddenly all burst through the woman, like a queue of the pent-up sensations she held back while she lost her shit with Jodie. And tears sat shimmering in her eyes. She looked at the Clown, who grabbed her and hushed her.

“It’s okay, Sal! It’s okay, we’re gonna find him!”

“He’s gonna fucking hate me! I’m a fucking monster! I didn’t mean to hurt her-!”

“Stop it!” Shawn snapped suddenly; his tone serious, and the sharpness of his voice shut Sallie down promptly, and she only managed to sob mutely. “You meant _every_ little bit of it, because I know you’re not a nasty person. Jodie had it fucking coming.” Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he pulled her close. “Now, stop panicking and let’s find the dickhead. He can’t have gone too far.”

Sallie tried her best to calm her tears as Shawn pulled her through the headbanging crowd.

A staggeringly tall man reached and grabbed Shawn, yanking him back and Sallie turned with him, her tearful eyes huge as she looked at the looming beast. His mask was still on, the metallic fearsome grille, long black hair draping over his face. He was the tall guitarist from the band.

“Clown, the fuck is going on?! Why did you just disappear to another dimension?” His punishing blue eyes shot back at Sallie through the blackness of his mask’s eyeholes, and Sallie physically flinched at the glare of them.

“I’ll explain later, Mick! Find Corey!”

Mick nodded, once.

“The fuck has that fuck-face done now?” But Shawn didn’t answer. It was more of a rhetorical question, so Mick wasn’t expecting an answer. Instead, the towering behemoth began to walk through the drunken crowd of windmills and headbangers.

Sallie followed Shawn, her eyes barely glancing over towards the stairways and found the storming figure of-

She immediately pulled away from Shawn’s arms, and when he cried out in alarm, he realised where she was running to. Chasing Corey down the stairways.

“Corey!” Sallie screamed as she reached the top, seeing her friend hurrying down the stairs without looking back. She had a feeling the music was simply too loud, and he didn’t hear her. Sallie stammered, rushing down the stairs and delving into the darkness, the lights from the top floor fading as they reached the second. And almost as if he sensed someone following him, Corey quickened his pace, and Sallie pursued.

The heat of _Stairways_ was tremendous, drying the tears on her face almost promptly, and she felt them stiffening the flesh of her cheeks.

Corey was storming to the ground floor, and Sallie ran after him, halting abruptly out of politeness when other people were blocking her path, stumbling up the stairs and laughing cheerfully. Corey stalked insistently, his shoulders stiff and reluctant in letting anyone through. If you didn’t move, he was certainly going to make you move.

_Fuck! FUCK! FUCK!_

Sallie eventually hurried out, running into the darkened cold street of Des Moines, looking around. TORQUE saw her from where he sat on the kerb, blinked at her, and stood up slowly.

“You okay, Sal?”

“Corey! I’m looking for Corey! Something- Something happened!”

TORQUE didn’t need explaining. He was already looking at the blood on her knuckles and was now giving her a serious look. But he decided against interrogating her. She seemed really stressed out, and her fretting about just made her look so hurt.

Silently, TORQUE nodded his head to the corner of the building, and Sallie noticed a string of smoke following someone-

Sallie whimpered her gratitude to TORQUE and hurried around the building.

Her heart lifted when she saw the figure of Corey there, leaning against the wall, his back towards her. He clutched onto himself, smoke swirling from him. For a time, Sallie hesitated, feeling this terrible atmosphere of hostility from him.

Taking a long deep breath, Sallie stepped towards him.

“Corey?” She choked, but she wasn’t sure if she spoke loud enough for him to hear her.

She precariously reached to touch his arm, but halted, and pulled back. That would be dangerous. So, instead, Sallie stepped around him, slowly peering around the man to give him some form of warning that she was there.

Her hands were numb now…

“Corey?” She asked again, trying to get his attention, and she looked at him.

To her surprise, he wasn’t crying as she had expected. But he…

Sallie swallowed in supressed worry.

He had this sinister look, a menacing scowl of a man that was despising and plotting several murders, a man that was drowning in his own thoughts and was simply trying to fight it back. A cigarette was furiously burning in his mouth, trembling slightly from his chattering jaw, the cold air not doing him any favours. Even with such a small stick of tobacco and smoke, the ember glow at the tip of it lit his face, producing jagged sharp shadows over his features, a mask of darkness that lingered there, fatal. There was an antagonism in his eyes that Sallie had never seen before, she was frightened of it. It was threatening her off, warning her to leave him alone. And what was worse, even when she made her presence known, he ignored her, his eyes looking away, focusing away from her.

He was shattering but trying to stay in one piece.

She had seen this face before, one of a broken human contemplating in their life decisions, questioning the meaning of all this suffering.

Sallie saw _herself_ …

Another human that felt the same way as she did…

“Corey…” She whispered, her voice so fragile and small, and finally she grew the courage to reach and touch his arm tenderly-

Corey aggressively snatched his arm away, mutely, pulling away from Sallie and turned his back to her. He didn’t dare look at her reaction. He took his cigarette and took a deep inhale of it, snatching it away from his mouth and blew smoke out of his nose assertively. She watched him bite his lip in frustration. “I’m so sorry…” Sallie whimpered silently, hurting writhing in her voice. It cracked under the pressure of emotion that build up inside of her. “I-I did warn you, and when…I…” Sallie stalled, trying to find the words that suddenly betrayed her and left her. “I didn’t…I mean you…I…”

The dreadlocked man didn’t respond. He just let her blabber whatever crap she could spare. His mind was running on blank, shutting down temporarily as he fed his addiction. Sallie tried to explain again, her throat tightening. “I don’t like Jodie…”

“And that’s why you punched her.” Corey interjected unexpectedly, sucking the last remaining bit of his cigarette before flicking it away, blowing out a large cloud of cancerous smoke. It shrouded around him like a cloak.

“Not…exactly…” Sallie began, uncertain where to start with such a statement.

“It doesn’t fucking matter anyway.” Corey murmured, turning away and was already walking back towards _Stairways_. “I’m a fucking waste of time.”

Something about that comment spurred Sallie into action, and with a sudden swipe of her hand, she snatched the back of Corey’s shirt and pulled, yanking him to a stop.

“You’re not a fucking waste of time!” Sallie fairly shouted, the shock and agony from hearing such a thing wounded her. “Don’t ever believe what she fucking said!”

She felt Corey trying to walk away, and with her other hand, she snatched at his shirt and began to pull now, bringing Corey back to her.

“Get the _fuck_ off me!”

“No, I won’t! Until I know you’re okay! And you’re not!”

“Fucking-!”

That was it.

Corey suddenly spun, his hands reaching for the little wrists and held them up, seizing the woman and yanked her back around the corner, tucking themselves away from prying eyes, and he threw her against the wall, holding her there. Sallie’s eyes widened when Corey leaned down to her eye-level, his eyes harsh and hateful, so piercing. He was breathing heavily, and she could smell the gross, raw taste of tobacco in his mouth and tongue.

His fingers grappled her wrists _tight_.

“Listen to me…” He started, his voice a low growl that brought ice inside of Sallie’s nervous system. “When I say ‘Get the fuck off me’, I _mean_ ‘Get the fuck off me!’” His eyes shot back at Sallie’s little hands, seeing a ribbon of her blood running down from her beaten knuckles, trickling onto his thumb, staining it red. It vaguely reminded him what she had done, and from what he caught from the scene, what she did in _his name_. She stood up for him, and while he saw it with his own eyes, he was convinced that she wasn’t trying to protect him. That she didn’t _care_.

But that came to him suddenly.

Why _did_ she care?

“Why did you fucking punch my girlfriend?” He grilled, ever so slowly, each word leaked from his clenched teeth. He swayed slightly, the drunkenness now returning to him from his horrible temper.

“Because I hated what she was doing to you…” Sallie said in a tiny voice, suffering and scared. “I hated…how she treated you like shit under her shoe…and how she could just abuse…your love and…d-dedication…how a person could just… _destroy_ another…I couldn’t watch her do that to you anymore…I couldn’t just leave her to have her way…You didn’t fucking do anything so _I_ did…and when I saw her leaving you for fucking dead…and went to fuck another guy…I-I-I…” Sallie shook hard, her voice losing under the awful heaviness of her emotions. Turning her face away, unable to bear his nasty stare, she closed her eyes. “I lost my shit…”

Corey stared at his best friend for a long hard moment, trying to compose his temper. He was losing it and hating every second of it. She was so right. So _fucking_ right…and he hated to admit how wrong he was. But-

“You shouldn’t have fucking hit my girlfriend like that-!”

Sallie’s eyes snapped open, and she turned to him all of a sudden.

And screamed.

“She shouldn’t even _be_ your fucking girlfriend! She’s fucking _cheating_ on you!” With a sudden burst of emotion, Sallie snatched her wrists from Corey and pushed him firmly, just to gather distance from him, to get him away from her. “Are you that fucking stupid?! She’s cheating on you and you _still_ fucking latch onto her! Just… _why?!_ ”

“Every woman is the fucking same!” Corey yelled back, his eyes glaring and cold.

“Not every woman is the fucking same!”

“Give me one prime example of a woman that’s not like Jodie!”

“ _I’m_ not fucking Jodie!”

Corey opened his mouth but found that he had no comeback. Come to think of it, she was right.

_A-fucking-gain!_

But he stalled, his mouth slowly closing as he retreated his remark. However, Sallie wasn’t done. “I’m not fucking like her! I care and love people as much and as hard as I fucking _hate_ people! I hate people, so fucking much! I hate how I am brought to this damn fucking world to be a nice, _good_ person, and all I fucking _get_ is fucking _shit!_ People are fucking cunts! People are the equivalent of hell! People equals fucking shit!” Her voice reached to the night skies. From the distance, gathering strangers at the other end of the street heard the shrieks and were watching the scene as they walked past. But that didn’t matter.

It never mattered anymore.

Corey stared down at the little woman and felt himself crumble against the taciturn stare she gave him. He could see her shaking with absolute heartache, her little shoulders shook, her bloody knuckles were beginning to dry now under the night air.

“Y-You fucking hate me…” Corey murmured.

“Why the _fuck_ would I hate you?!” Sallie screamed again, her voice a shrill of agony, shrieking as if she was dying. It was beginning to hurt her throat now, become raw and tattered. “I fucking _care_ about you, so fucking much! That’s why I’m angry!”

“Why the fuck would you care about me-?”

“Because you’re my fucking best friend, you fucking _idiot!_ ”

And that was when the argument seemed to have calmed down. Sallie’s words had gotten to Corey, and while he felt slightly relieved, Sallie was terribly in heartbreak. It was like she exchanged herself for his bitterness, taking the burden of his emotions onto her so that he could feel better, and while he felt a strange mass lifting off his chest, she felt the weight of the world over her.

Corey took a deep sigh, his eyes avoiding her now. The blood on his thumb glistened in the night, and slowly, he brought it to his lips, licking the blood clean from his flesh, tasting the iron in it.

“I’m gonna get a drink…” Corey mumbled lowly, not looking at her. “You can stay, or you can go. I understand either way.”

And without another word, Corey turned and began to return into _Stairways_. That was good that he left Sallie behind, because when he was out of sight, Sallie finally allowed herself to let go, and she sobbed hysterically against her hands, sliding down the wall and falling onto her knees, her hands covering her weeping face as she cried hard.

“Mum…” Sallie whimpered between sobs, clutching onto herself, holding Corey’s hoodie against her body, the only thing that kept her warm. She was so confused. Despite her efforts to get Corey to understand, she felt like it was an empty victory, a triumph so worthless that she wondered if there was any point. “Mum…I wish you were here…I’m stuck…help me…”

And no one answered.


	16. Deprived

Sallie had decided to return inside of _Stairways_ after she composed herself. Her mind, heart, soul and little body drained from all the emotions she had experienced. Her mind full of entangled chemicals and happy hormones, she didn’t really know what to make of it.

Almost dazingly, she walked up the stairs after giving TORQUE a blank flat smile when he asked if she was okay.

 _I don’t want to talk about it_ , her eyes begged, and the muscular bodyguard seemed to have understood. He would have to focus on the cameras more tonight, just for this little one’s sake.

Holding the banister, she ran her hand up it as she slowly walked up the stairs. She had been outside for about ten minutes, constantly crying and trying to calm herself down, and it wasn’t until now she had no more strength to cry, her eyes red and swollen. Thankfully, the darkness and dim lights of the nightclub hid that.

On instincts, she walked up to the first floor, where there was the bar, and in the far corner she noticed Corey just lying on the sofa, falling asleep even under the heavy, loud music. It was a natural gift for rock and metal lovers. Several empty paper cups dotted around the sofa, presumably his.

Numbly, Sallie walked towards the sofa, the club-goers still ambling along, oblivious to her own issues. Once she approached the sofa, she bent down, her emotionally drained eyes fastening onto Corey. His hands were tucked under his face, forming a pitiful pillow for his head, his lips open and bent against his hands. Unable to decide what to do, Sallie thought it was best to stay with him. She assumed he had passed out from drinking excessively…

_So much alcohol, so little time…_

Carefully, she grabbed Corey’s shoulders, pulling him up and his head rolled to the side, his body heavy with the dead-weight of slumber, and Sallie carefully sat onto the sofa again, getting comfy and slowly placed Corey’s head onto her lap. That way, he was comfy and sleeping, and she knew where he was.

Her instincts making her so wary of Corey’s whereabouts.

She knew he was drunk, _far_ out of this world now. And she remembered what happened last time someone she knew and cared for was so intoxicated they died-

With a hand on his head, Sallie blankly stared at the dancers as she ran her fingers through his dreadlocks. They were so pleasant to touch, the thickness of each dreadlock, how precisely they were formed. She grabbed one and ran her finger all the way down, from base to tip, feeling the weight in each different strand.

After a long moment of stroking Corey’s hair, a small thought came to Sallie’s mind, and impassively, she pulled her phone out. She slowly tilted her head, staring blankly at the neon screen.

11.17pm

And a text from her father:

_What time are you going home?_

Sallie had to think, long and hard now.

Corey was incredibly intoxicated, but there was no way she was going to leave him behind. _Of course_ she was fucking _furious_ with him, but she refused to leave a drunken, helpless man in the streets. She remembered the story Corey told her once where his friends from years ago threw him in a dumpster and left him. She vividly remembered how Corey laughed the situation off, but she knew deep down he was still hurt by it.

_I am not them…I am not HER…_

Coldly, Sallie’s thoughts became harsh, acidic and bitter. So, she knew for a fact that her father and _Satan_ would flat-out refuse to let Corey stay at her house. There was a couch, sure, but Sam wouldn’t like a strange man sleeping in her house, and she knew that they wouldn’t allow him to stay in Sallie’s bed, even if she offered to sleep on the floor.

Her thumb ran over the buttons, and she began to type on them furiously, forming a sentence, and she knew this was the right decision. Her father wouldn’t like it, and Sam would _hate_ it…

…but she didn’t _fucking_ care anymore.

_Hey Dad, I’m staying over at Corey’s tonight. We have work tomorrow so he’ll drop me off home after work. X_

And she tucked her phone into her pocket. That was a lie. She didn’t have work tomorrow. It was a day off, but she needed an excuse to be out all this time…

Now that was done, she knew there was another pressing issue. Where the fuck Corey lived?

So long it wasn’t like her own home, Sallie didn’t care.

Yawning, she shifted and tried to get comfy again, but her shuffling alerted Corey that someone was nearby, and he jolted suddenly away, propping himself up slightly and felt the softness of Sallie’s thighs. He gradually turned his head to her, his eyes hazy and drunken.

“Sal?” He murmured, and Sallie simply smiled. It was a small and pathetic smile, but she wanted to show him that his awakening from his drunken nap was welcomed. He blinked again, shutting his eyes closed for a moment and opened them again.

Then he smiled, almost stupidly. “You’re still here…I thought…you left me…”

“No…” Sallie replied calmly, the blaring music seemingly numb to the pair of them now, getting used to the staggering volume. “Corey, we’re going home now…”

He blinked slowly again, turning around on the sofa, rolling so that he was facing her, and curled onto her again. Gently, Sallie tapped his forehead. “No, Corey, wake up. We’re leaving now.” There was almost no emotion in her tone. She sounded tired.

Reading her mind, Corey yawned, and the sight of him yawning made Sallie repeat his action, tapping his back again. “C’mon, let’s go.”

With a groan, Corey slowly tried to pull himself up, grabbing her and the sofa, pulling him so that he sat up, and he remained sitting there, head hanging low, his dreadlocks swaying from his sleepy rocking. Sallie stood up from the sofa gradually, turning back to Corey and reached down, grabbing his hands. “C’mon…” She repeated, pulling Corey up to make him stand.

He refused, his head hanging as he didn’t help the little woman at all. She pulled at his arms again, and he fell back into the sofa.

Corey burst out laughing, so idiotically, and Sallie found no energy to laugh too. Her drunken friend wasn’t cooperating, and she waited for him to calm down. She decided to try again, bending down and wrapping her arms around Corey’s chest, hugging him and using all her fatigued strength, she tried to pull him up from the sofa that way.

It worked.

Briefly.

Sallie lifted Corey up, and he stood up with her too, but he didn’t _hold_ himself up. Deliberately, he leaned onto her, all his weight following very quickly, and he was collapsing onto Sallie. Her boots bolted to the ground, using her small frame to hold up the limp body of Corey. And in her panic, she threw herself and Corey onto the sofa again, forcing Corey to sit and she pinned him.

_Fuck sake…_

And Corey had his eyes closed the whole fucking time!

“Hey, dickhead!” Sallie shouted, and Corey finally opened his eyes lazily, staring at Sallie. “We’re going home.”

He smirked before slowly pouting his lips.

_I can’t believe this…I can’t believe that fucking cunt had ruined such a good man…_

“Jodie left me…”

Sallie hesitated, hearing those words leave Corey and she turned to him.

“Pardon?”

He didn’t seem depressed, or heartbroken. Not right now, anyway. He was just as tired as she was, and when he gave her that weak, small smile, it felt more painful to witness than him pretending he was okay. It was like he was accepting the situation, but the emotional turmoil that will soon follow, the depression waves and heartache were on hold for the moment. He hasn’t acknowledged them just yet, the alcohol giving him a warm, dulling buzz, hiding those feelings, blocking and killing the pain.

But they will come to get him. They _always_ will.

“Jodie left me…” Corey repeated, his eyes blinking sleepily. “She fucked me off…didn’t wanted me anymore…”

“Jodie does not deserve you…” Sallie reassured, grabbing his chin and making sure he looked at her. “Jodie is the one that’s a waste of fucking space.”

For a time, Corey stared, his smile faltering slowly, and Sallie saw tears brimming his lashes.

She felt a horrible rush of cold falling through her, the sight of Corey with tears in his eyes was strikingly poignant.

“I’m not wanted…Everyone’s going…you’re gonna leave me-”

“Shh…” Sallie hushed him softly, her hand releasing his chin and cupped his cheek. “I’m not going to leave you. You’re stuck with me.”

“You hate me…” Came a weak whine as Corey closed his eyes.

“Stop it. I don’t hate you.” Sallie insisted, her voice firm yet strangely gentle. “I never hated you. Remember…I’m _not_ Jodie.” Stroking his cheek with her thumb, she felt a tear rolling down his face, trickling onto her hand and Sallie felt her heart bleed for him. “Don’t cry…ssh..”

Corey didn’t understand it, but the caring nature of this woman, the gentle voice and sense of humility, the stroking and hushing and calm reassurance was something he never got before. All the affection and nurturing crushed down a barrier he had held up all around him for so many years, and yet she managed to break it!

He didn’t understand how someone so broken could be so sweet, but he knew he was lucky to have her. And despite the way he treated her when they first met, he was just amazed how resilient and persistent this person was. Sallie had mentioned how her mother taught her to be the friend to everyone, the one that people _need_ , that little ray of moonlight in everyone’s stormy nights…

And she did a fucking brilliant job of it…

For a long moment, Corey stared up at Sallie for a time, taking in her exhausted features. He then shut his eyes, and they clenched tightly, _tighter_ …

…Sallie was now drying his weeping tears with the sleeve of the hoodie she wore. Corey curled against Sallie as he cried hard under the rumble of the heavy metal around them. And soon, his hands snatched at her arms strongly and pressed his face against her chest, drawing her to a hold and sobbed uncontrollably, unable to stop this wave of emotion that suddenly assaulted him. Instantaneously, Sallie wrapped her arms around his head and drew him close to a comforting embrace as the heavy metal gave them sanctuary from their own nightmares.

There was something about a _man_ crying his heart out, how he wailed and howled to the ceiling as he wept, it was devastating, _heart-breaking_ …

* * *

Shawn has made it his prime mission to find the ‘pair of idiots’, and so he was relieved when he found them together on the second floor. _Stairways_ was closing, and everyone had begun to filter out of the nightclub.

The Clown felt a bit strange when he found both Sallie and Corey on the sofa, their arms and legs tangled together, nestled in each other’s arms on the sofa, and had fallen asleep there together. He woke Sallie up, knowing that she wasn’t drunk like Corey. But when it was Corey’s turn to wake up, he downright refused to get up.

He had began crying again, and together, Shawn and Sallie had to pull the distraught man from the sofa, his dreadlocks a mess and tangled against the crooks of his throat. With the help of Shawn, they brought Corey downstairs, feeling the man clumsily stumble down. Shawn didn’t explain anything to Sallie, seeing the weariness and storm in her eyes, he thought it would be best to just get the pair of them back home.

Sallie explained about her plan, about staying back at Corey’s place to keep an eye on him, and when she saw Shawn wince, she gave him a questioning glare.

“It’s…not the prettiest place to be, not gonna lie.” Shawn had said, to which Sallie replied:

“If it’s nothing like my own _home_ , I don’t care.” Giving him a soft smile, Shawn kindly offered Sallie and Corey a ride back to Corey’s apartment. Corey lounged on the backseats, falling asleep again while Sallie and Shawn sat at the front. The ride was silent most of the time, but Shawn was good. He was very understanding despite his crazed Clown persona.

“Corey’s lucky to have you…” Shawn began, watching from the corner of his eye as Sallie turned to him, her expression shattered. “Everyone just seems to abandon him.” He shrugged. “You’re the only one that stuck up for him, and _stayed_ with him, and tolerated him while he was fucking drunk…that’s…that takes some fucking balls, man.” He glanced away from the road for a moment. “Corey…gets _real_ nasty when he’s drunk.”

Sallie shrugged, resting her head on the glass of the window.

“I’m just…” She shook her head groggily. “I’ve been so alone for so long…Corey’s the only shred of light in my life…I can’t lose that…”

Shawn smiled lightly.

“He’s so damn fucking lucky…You’re too good for this world, Sal,”

Corey burst out the warning of vomiting, and cussing, Shawn pulled to the side swiftly and Corey dragged himself out, staggering towards the small baseball field and rested against one of the lamp-post, and began to vomit aggressively, hunched down, his hurls loud from where he stood. Shawn and Sallie watched from the car, and Sallie sighed deeply, shaking her head at the scene.

“He’s gonna hate me when he sobers up…”

Shawn tilted his head at the small woman.

“Why?”

A pause.

“Because I hit his fucking shitty-ass girlfriend.”

A smirk tugged at the end of Shawn’s lips.

“Can I just say, _thank you so fucking much!_ ” When Sallie faced him with confusion written on her face, Shawn added: “Seriously, the whole of Iowa knew how much of a manipulative shitty slut she was. It’s like she tries to fuck with anything with legs, including fucking women and goats!”

“Goats?”

Shawn grinned, but didn’t explain.

“What I’m trying to say is that me and the boys have been trying to tell Corey that she’s a mess, that she’s trouble. And he wouldn’t listen.”

“Why?”

“I think it’s because he’s afraid of being alone, so he dates her, and he feels valued as a man for having a girlfriend, even if she is a fucking mess…”

Sallie turned back to Corey, watching him bending down with his mouth gaping open, saliva trickling down in think webs of strings, waiting for another wave of puke. Orange and pink bile splattered on the dark grassy earth messily. “He needs a woman like _you_ ,”

The little Brit would have been touched by such a comment, but she snorted in disagreement. “I’m being serious, Sal!” Shawn insisted, hope in his tone. “I can’t wait to tell the boys you fucking _punched_ her, best fucking cock-block ever!” He laughed heartily, and Sallie found herself smiling softly.

She did feel proud, after all.

* * *

Soon, when Corey finished, he returned to Shawn’s car and the trip back to Corey’s apartment was tedious. Shawn gave Sallie directions to Corey’s room, floor and door number, as well as giving her Corey’s keys when he snatched them out of his pocket. Corey was far too gone in his daze to have noticed it.

Sallie did as Shawn told her. They exchanged numbers in case Sallie needed an emergency contact, and when the Clown-Man drove away, Sallie dragged Corey back to his apartment.

On the Eighth Floor of _Hubbles Towers Apartment,_ a dilapidated home Sallie had not realised existed until now.

Unlocking Corey’s apartment door, with the man practically hanging off her small body, Sallie achingly dragged the dozy Corey inside and she stalled at the sight of the apartment, her heart seizing.

Empty bottles of alcohol scattered all around on the floor. Some were half drunken, others completely empty, a pile of metal bottle caps stacked on the low, battered coffee-table, almost like a trophy of all the alcohol consumed. From one side of the room, she saw his bedroom, the beaten door slightly opened, revealing its missing door-handle and a large dint in the wooden door. Someone had kicked it brutally. In the darkness of his almost windowless bedroom, his bed was there, unmade and pathetic looking with a small thin blanket. What stirred the animal fear back were the few blades dotting around the apartment, on the floor, on the side table, on the sofa…from shaving razers to pencil sharpeners…

And that awful, _awful_ smell of musty, old smoke finally hit her, a painful burn within her nostrils. Cigarette smoke.

Sallie's first instincts was to open the window. But that's when she saw it.

They were all boarded up...

She wanted to asked Corey why they were boarded up, but his condition made it impossible for her to ask the drunken man such simple questions. She just assumed from the peeking cracks of broken windows that they were damaged, either from violent kids or Corey himself. According to her father, Des Moines has always been a lovely place to live, where neighbours were friends, and everyone was content. Sallie couldn’t help but think otherwise, throughout living in Des Moines was only harder, more _painful_ , then when she was living back in England as a child.

It seemed the world got much darker after her mother died…

No one had seemed to bother replacing the windows of this beaten apartment block. In the sleepy, cold city of Des Moines, Iowa, no one cared for the dead, hollow people of this city. And Corey Taylor was one of those dead, hollow people.

Corey shifted, slurring something incoherently, and it reminded Sallie of her primary mission.

She turned to his bedroom, dragging the man towards it and kicked the door lightly to open it, hearing empty bottles toppling together, glass chattering as she walked. The room was cold.

Carefully, Sallie pulled the heavy man off her back, which crippled in terrible ache and stiffness from hurling his whole weight around, and she placed Corey on his bed, lying him on his back. Vomit splashback was on his pants and shirt, dark circles hung under his eyes, sunken and dead-looking, as if he hadn’t slept in days. She decided to play it at best, and pulled his shirt off over his head, tugging at his handsome, smeared face and dreadlocks, but the man seemed to be at peace now that his body recognised the softness of his bed.

Sallie was exhausted now, having an interesting and _very_ eventful night, she needed sleep badly. Even she was struggling to keep her eyes open.

Untying his shoes, Sallie removed them and placed them down the side of the bed and went to his belt. And hesitated. She wanted to get the man as comfortable as possible, but would that be invading his privacy?

_Fuck it…_

And she unbuckled his belt.

“You gonna fucking blow me…?”

Sallie looked up at Corey stoically, and he was smirking back at her dumbly. “That’s why you’re undressing me. You wanna fuck me…”

_Fucking hell…_

Sallie felt her body stiffen, and she took a moment to halt all her strange attraction towards this man.

“I’m putting you to bed.” She whispered softly, unzipping his pants and pulled his pants down, avoiding the speckles of bile there.

“Fuck me…please…” Corey slurred, his hand roaming over his groin and grabbed it, firmly. “I could go for a real hard fuck right now…”

“I could go for a real hard fucking sleep right now…” Sallie reflected, fatigued. Grabbing the man, she rolled Corey onto his side, keeping him safe should his body decided to throw up again. If he vomits on the floor, Sallie will clean it in the morning.

Sallie stared down at the drunken man on the bed, slouched and ungraceful, donned in nothing but his underwear, loose and baggy, but she could see his asscheeks in them perfectly, and she had to stop herself. His dreadlocks were bundled onto one side against his face, and his eyes were closing already.

Sighing, Sallie tugged the blanket over his weary body, feeling his cold flesh as she brushed her knuckles across him. They were still aching…

When she tucked him in, she ran her hand through Corey’s dreadlocks. She fucking loved how they felt through her fingers. This was probably going to be the only time she touches them so much.

“I’ll be in the next room, okay?”

“Hm…” Was all Corey said before he fell into another deep sleep.

_He seemed safe, and I’ll be nearby…_

Sallie left the room carefully, and closed the door behind her, avoiding the debris and mess that scattered the entire floor of the apartment. Her eyes looked around the state of the apartment, and she could already see that this was just the beginning of something very, _very_ dark.

But right now, she had no power. Her eyes laid on the battered sofa, and she walked towards it wearily and collapsed onto it, falling asleep before she hit the sofa.


	17. Corey's Bread Bank

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to my lovely friends/followers on Instagram,( including @torey.caylor, @corey.taylord) who has now convinced me in making it canon that Drunk!Corey loves bread and owns a 'bread bank'. I love you all, we need some light-hearted shit anyway!
> 
> Inspired by this masterpiece: https://www.instagram.com/p/B-Ug_kZnebz/
> 
> Thank you gang. I love you all. <3

As soon as Sallie opened her eyes, she stared up at the ceiling of the apartment, seeing the cracks that etched the plaster. The headache was there, and so was the sorrow. She had no idea how long she was asleep for, but it did little good for her. The room was still dark.

Motionless, Sallie remained there, her mind blank. It seemed as though she was still drained from all emotion. She had to think, wondering if she was going to be like this forever now. Completely numb, emotionless…

Inhuman…

_Is this it? Am I so fucking done with this life that I’m…dead…inside?_

That thought terrified her. She never has thought that something so small like Jodie, despite all the shit she has been through, could have such an effect that it would determine Sallie for the rest of her life. She fucking hated it.

But when she thought about Corey, she felt a little slither of hope-

 _Corey_ …

As Sallie slowly rose, she winced at the pain in her neck, reaching up and rubbing it hard, trying to soften the tense, aching muscles. She had slept awkwardly on the sofa, her neck crooked. It took her a moment to feel slightly better, getting up from the sofa and turned to the bedroom.

The door was already open, and when Sallie stood by the door, her heart sank slightly.

Corey wasn’t there.

_Fuck…_

“Cor-”

Something fell in the next room, and Sallie spun around. It came from the kitchen…

Turning on the balls of her feet, Sallie calmly walked towards the kitchen, inching towards it carefully to see who was in there, praying it was the dreadlocked man.

Her hand lifted to the light switch, and flicked it, revealing a scene she had not expected.

To her relief, it was just Corey, but she felt as though she had walked into something she should not have.

Corey sat on the grubby kitchen floor, in his underwear, legs spread open from where he sat. And all around him was a variety of bread goods. Sallie blinked, seeing the baguettes and bun rolls on one side of him, moulding bread between his thighs, and bagels sprawled on his legs. He sat there with his head hanging low, dreadlocks slightly swaying from his breathing. It was as if he had fallen asleep like this.

She had no idea what time it was, but it was certainly too late for this shit.

“Corey?” Sallie whispered, beckoning the man to wake up. The stench of booze emitted from his grimy body. Her voice was enough to alert the man that he was spotted, and he looked up at her suddenly, snorting out of his powernap. Then he tilted his head at her tiredly. “Corey, you okay?”

“Welcome…welcome to the bread bank…” He slurred, clearly still intoxicated. “We sell bread, we sell loafs…”

Sallie could only stare, blinking a few times as she tried to figure out how to react to such a situation. Corey was very drunk, the noxious alcohol making him a little lightheaded and loopy. Her brows furrowed.

“Uh…Corey…?”

Corey’s head lolled to the other side, and with a limp wrist he beckoned Sallie to come inside. Seeing him rather harmless, Sallie stepped into the kitchen, pushing a few empty cans out of her way with the side of her boot.

“We got bread on deck, bread on the floor…” And then with a deep breath, he tipped his head back and screamed at the top of his voice: “ _TOASTED_! _ROASTED!”_

Horrified at the sudden scream, Sallie hushed Corey instantly, crouching down before him and covering his mouth.

“Oi! Shut the fuck up!” Sallie hissed; her hand pressed firmly over his smirking lips. She felt him giggle stupidly, pushing his tongue out and licking her palm. The hot wetness alarmed Sallie and she snatched her hand back. “Hey!” She piped up, wiping her saliva-covered hand on her jeans. “Listen, Corey, you’re gonna have to go back to bed now. I…don’t think you need to open your ‘Bread Bank’ this early…”

Corey stared at her numbly, blinking slowly.

“…y-you need to order bread before I close, miss…”

“Corey, I’m not playing…” Sallie trailed off, confusion thick in her tone, but when Corey’s eyes widen in despair, it gave Sallie a horrible sensation inside of her. She was expecting him to cry, and she couldn’t handle seeing him weep like that again… “Okay…Listen, I need a baguette and a brioche…”

“We don’t have either of those…” Corey said almost instantly, now smiling idiotically to see Sallie playing along, entertaining him. Sallie tutted, her eyes lowering down at the baguettes and brioches that sprawled all around him.

“Hmm…sure you don’t…” Sallie murmured doubtfully, looking back at Corey, who was now giggling like a little child, his laugh almost adorable as both of his hands lifted to his face. It seemed this amused him.

Though his little giggles lifted Sallie’s heart slightly. They were cute, innocent-like.

“You can get the gluten free white bread, the potato bread-”

_Potato bread?!_

“What the fuck….is gluten?” Sallie stalled. Come to think of it now, she had no idea what the fuck gluten was, or _why_ bread needed to be gluten free…. unless Corey was making drunken bullshit up. It wouldn’t surprise her. Sighing deeply, Sallie began to gather the scattered baguettes and brioches from the floor. “Take that shit out.”

“It’s gluten free-”

“I don’t _care_ if it’s free-”

“We got crackers.” Corey interrupted suddenly, opening a cupboard from where he sat and pulled out an unopened packet of crackers. “No gluten!” He held it in front of Sallie, his lips pouting almost cutely in mock-fury. He rocked slightly with dizziness.

“Corey…I’m gonna tell you to take that shit _out_ of my face…and whatever the fuck gluten is-”

“I can’t take _shit_ out of the _bread_!” Corey slurred drunkenly, his tone constantly changing volume.

“Then why put it in the first place?!”

_Wait a moment…why the fuck am I arguing over fucking BREAD?! And what the FUCK is gluten?!_

“Look…” Corey held his finger at Sallie, a smirk tugging at the end of his lips as he chuckled again, high-pitched and stupid. “We’ve got whole wheat… gluten free. Texas toast…. gluten free-”

“Fuck all that! You’re going to bed, mister!” Dropping the array of breads on the floor, figuring she’ll tidy it tomorrow, she stood up and grabbed Corey’s hands, lifting him onto his feet. To her surprise, he complied. As he stood, he was rocking, stumbling to the side and grabbed onto Sallie suddenly for support, the little tired woman holding him close. “C’mon, dumbass, get to bread before- FUCK!”

“You-You wanna bagel?” Corey garbled again, leaning down to Sallie’s ear, stumbling and his face pressed lazily into her shoulder. “Doughnut hole-”

“ _Bed_ , now!”

And Corey giggled again like a misbehaving child. It was rather charming, she had to admit, and all while she was trying to be serious, Corey had a _serious_ issue with bread…

“W-Wait…”

Corey pulled away from Sallie, and she grumbled, watching as the man hesitantly, and carefully bend down. He bent too far forward and nearly fell flat on his face, but Sallie was like his shadow, and caught him from falling. He finally picked up one baguette. When he straightened, he hugged it against his chest. “I…love bread.”

“I’m sure you do.”

“Here…smell it…smell it, it smells like ass…” Corey murmured, shoving the baguette against Sallie’s face. She turned her head away from it. “Lick it…”

“I don’t wanna lick it-”

“Lick it like you would with dick, virgin plane…”

“Hey, don’t say the V word when you’re drunk.”

“I…I can make you _n-not_ a virgin…” Corey was now lewdly grinning, his eyes half-closed as he tried to look serious. He was doing a very poor job of it. “Let me shove this up your pussy…” He waved the baguette around, chuckling and tripped backwards. Sallie held his arms and pulled him close to her, stopping him from falling.

“C’mon, you moron. Time to sleep-”

“Did you _baguette_ about me?!” Corey burst out laughing unexpectedly, his drunken consciousness finding everything hilarious now, and he toppled to the side, collapsing onto the small kitchen bin and fell onto the floor, the bin comically shooting to the other side of the kitchen from his sudden impact.

“Fuck sake, Taylor!” Sallie shouted, but her exclamation was tangled with laughter, somehow finding the scene funnier than it should be. Just the execution and sudden pun Corey burst out…

Corey was a danger when he was drunk…but he wasn’t _nasty-!_

“You’ve got nice buns…” Came the whine from the drunken moron. “Was your father a baker?”

“C’mon you idiot!” Sallie sighed, after finishing her own giggle fit and pulled Corey up in her arms, standing him up. “Bedtime, now.”

And even as Sallie pulled Corey back to bed, he clutched onto the now broken baguette aggressively tight. Sallie decided to not remove it, for her safety.


	18. Left Behind

There was a storm rumbling outside by the time daylight touched Des Moines, small flashes of lights could be seen through the cracks between the boarded windows. The rain pelting the windows and worn building, lashing and hissing.

Corey was stirring in his sleep now; the sheets had been tossed off him as he had done it in the wake of the night. And, eventually, he felt his mind wake up, but kept his eyes closed, almost too afraid of waking up to wherever he was dumped off now. His body felt filthy, grimy, but he didn't care. He shifted, curling up in the foetal position and grabbed onto his skull, his brain screaming at him, his mind pounded so loudly, like war drums.

Soon, he let out a pathetic whimper of pain when he realised, he couldn’t sleep anymore. Slowly sitting up, he opened his eyes to see…his own room. It was dark, and he was undressed. Having no recollection of what happened last night, he simply assumed he was dreaming of the night out, of the horrors of seeing his girlfriend…

Wearily, Corey blinked and opened his eyes again, staring at the dirty carpet, and remained still.

No…he remembered _that_ part. Jodie had cheated on him and had been doing so for so many times. Everyone had been warning him about her, even Sallie, despite his assumption she was simply jealous…

_Fuck…Sal, she probably left me. Probably fucking walked away from me…_

A shuddering sigh escaped his nose, another whimper soon followed, and he rubbed his skull in agony, his dreadlocks falling past his shoulders.

A whiff of bread came to his nose, and when he surveyed his surroundings, he noticed a half-crushed baguette in his bed, crumbs everywhere.

He stared at it.

_What the fuck…_

He decided not to overthink it. The hangover was obliterating him…

He gruffly leaned down over the bed lazily, opening the drawer of the bedside table and began sifting through it, finding no traces of painkillers. He grumbled, reluctantly standing up and stepped towards the door, his mind vacant yet faint, stomach foul and empty.

But when he opened the door of his bedroom, he saw a body sprawled on the sofa, and he genuinely felt tears burning the back of his eyes when he saw Sallie. A small smirk pulled at his lips when he saw her sleeping position. Her top half of her body had fallen down the side of the sofa, now sprawl on the floor, her face planted against the carpet, and her hips and legs were draped over the pillows and cushions, which were pulled by her body and were off the sofa with her. She had destroyed that battered sofa in her sleep, and somehow the scene amused Corey slightly. Even her jeans were pulled down, revealing a little asscrack past her panties.

_Fucking idiot…_

But it did make him wonder. She was still there, after all this time. After the way he acted and spoke to her, he was very surprised she persisted in staying with him. She must have brought him back home after last night…he vaguely recalled it, only parts that he would rather not recite.

Corey felt a bit awkward in all honesty, having no true experience of a friend willing to stay by his side, even when he was drunk, and after every time he has been such a dick to her. He wasn’t used to this treatment, this pure dedication of a friendship with another human. It felt good, _really good_ , but he was also so frightened. She was going to leave him one day, he knew it…

She snored in her sleep, and Corey decided to leave her alone for now, to let her sleep, but not like that. She was clearly exhausted from the amazing night…and yet…

On soundless feet, Corey approached the little woman, crouching down and carefully scooped her up, gathering her arms and legs and lifted her from the floor. She shifted in his arms and murmured something about bread, but he shrugged it off and took her to his room. Kicking the destroyed baguette off the bed with his foot, he gently placed her on his side of the bed.

No one slept on the other side…not even Jodie…She never liked coming here, and if he had to be honest, neither did he.

He rested Sallie’s face into the pillows, and he stared at her for a time, his hand on her forehead and brushed the hair from her face. She was resting, but it was evident how drained she was, little darkened circles under her eyes, the look of silent desolation. She was stuck in a nightmare she couldn’t escape.

His eyes looked down at her small hands, seeing the deepened redness of her knuckles. He stared at them sorrowfully, seeing such small, pale hands be wounded, how such pretty little things could be ruined because of him. The blood had been washed away, but he saw the torn skin trying to mend itself, scabs and black bruises from where she threw punches-

That was it. Sallie punched someone, and he snapped at her for it…but it was because…

_I’m sorry, Sal…_

Running his fingers through her hair, he watched her sleep for a little longer. He heard Sallie take a deep breath, and he froze when she moved. He was expecting her to wake up, but instead she moved without opening her eyes, her hands reaching for his hand, and in her sleep she felt his arm.

It was like instincts told her who she was with, and she pulled his arm towards her face, hugging it wantonly against her face and rested her head on his hand.

That drew a small sleepy smile on her face.

Corey had to take another deep breath to calm himself down from the scene, feeling almost tearful with elation. This woman, right here, was a sweet blessing to his life. A pain in the ass and an idiot, but a blessing nonetheless.

It pained him when he carefully pulled his arm out of her grasp, setting himself free and Sallie seemed to have felt it, her smile dropping and she rolled onto the other side, her back facing him. An inkling of a thought tried to convince him to come back to bed and hold onto her…but that would be too creepy. She’d freak out, and he was only her friend. He didn’t want to be _that guy_ …

Finally, he stood up, removed her boots and pulled the bedsheets over Sallie, feeling lightheaded and felt the headache proceeding in giving him a terrible time being awake.

_I wish I could sleep forever…_

Corey left his bedroom and walked to the bathroom, approaching the sink and opened the medicine cabinet. No pain killers. Not ever ibuprofen.

_Fuck…_

He shut the cabinet a bit too loudly, looking at the broken mirror once it was closed, and he stared at his shattered reflection. Even the thick crack across the mirror agreed with him.

He was a disaster. A fucking monster that no one wanted…

Sallie was only being nice to him because she had to…

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" He asked his reflection, hanging his head low. He barely remembered last night, but he got little fragments on what had happened.

* * *

Something told Sallie to wake up, and so she did.

When her eyes opened, her mind registered instantly that she was no longer on the sofa, but in a bed, and one that didn’t feel or smelt like her own. Smoke, that earthly dense scent of male musk-

She groaned against the pillow, inhaling it deeply and recognised it as the smell of Corey’s hair. She remembered the distinct scent when she hugged him. The smell made her smile faintly. She laid there, unmoved, the blanket wrapped around her tiny body as she pondered what had happened and could only determine that Corey had tucked her into his bed.

_You cheeky arse…_

Her arms stretched as she yawned long, her body feeling well-rested. The clock on the bedside table told her it was in the afternoon. She had slept all the way through the morning. Corey’s Bread Bank incident occurred about 5:30am…

But even then, she felt alright.

Clinging onto the blanket, as if it was Corey himself, Sallie hugged it against her small body, her legs wrapped around it and she felt some sort of happiness to feel something around her legs and against her body, almost tricking her body and mind in thinking she was cuddling with someone…

But she knew she was only fooling herself.

Eventually, she left the bed, neatening and making it up so that it was ready. Fluffing the pillows and straightening the sheets as she would do with her own bed and walked out of the room. She heard muffled voices from the TV behind the door, and when she opened it, she saw Corey sat on the sofa, arms hanging over the back of the sofa, legs spread without a care and wasn’t even dressed, half nude, only wearing boxer shorts. A cigarette hung from his mouth. His hair was pulled into a loose ponytail, stray strands spewing from the sides of his face. When he heard her, he turned and faced her, dark bags under his eyes, like he hadn't slept in days. That crippled Sallie. Somehow, he seemed a lot more worse than last night. Broken, a discarded waste of society.

Her heart squeezed when she saw a bottle in his hand, and he had already drunken half of it.

Corey gave Sallie a weary smile.

“Morning,”

“Morning…” She replied back, just as tired. Corey moved on the sofa, dragging himself to the other side of the sofa and patted the empty space next to him, inviting Sallie to sit and watch TV with him.

She agreed, and softly sat on the empty seat with him, feeling the warmth of his body sitting there, and beside her.

“How did you sleep?” He asked, his eyes turning back to the TV, and he extinguished the cigarette on the sofa arm, only to pop the bottle into his mouth. Sallie watched his throat move as he drank, chugging it as if it was merely water.

“Uh…okay…” Came a soft reply as Sallie shuffled onto the sofa, getting more comfortable. She propped her feet onto the edge, tucking her legs against her chest. “It was interesting when you opened your Bread Bank.”

Corey blinked, and finally drew his eyes away from the TV and back at her.

“Bread…what?”

“You opened up a Bread Bank last night.” Sallie said, a small smirk on her face. “You were trying to sell me phallic breads and gluten free shit.”

“The fuck is gluten?”

Sallie held her arms up in defeat, shrugging.

“I don’t know, I was gonna ask you the same!”

Corey stared at Sallie for a moment, trying to process what had happened last night, and like a faded memory, it soon returned.

“Did I…” He ran a hand up his face. “Did I try to…fucking sell you _my_ bread?”

“Yeah, your selling methods was pretty shite to be honest.” Sallie grinned cheekily, making her best friend roll his eyes, tutting.

“Fucking women. I can never please them.” He laughed, and hearing the sound made Sallie laugh too, glad that he was joking….

But it was short-lived. Corey’s smile dropped, and he looked away. Sallie knew what he was thinking.

“Corey…”

“Sal…” Corey spoke at last, his voice small and unstable. “Did…Jodie…” He stalled, unable to say the words, but Sallie didn’t rush him. She couldn’t just blurt it to him, he _needed_ to understand and accept this. “Did Jodie dump me?” He suddenly looked at her, his brilliant blue eyes pleading.

Sallie hesitated.

“She _cheated_ on you, Corey…” Sallie replied eventually, carefully wording herself. “She was out fucking other guys while you were passed out.” Her own eyes dropped, unable to stand the reaction Corey would give her. But she had missed it anyway. Corey gave none. Instead, he tilted his head at her small hands, seeing the bruised knuckles.

With a lean hand, he took one of her hands gently and held it in the palm of his own, his fingers curling around her small fingers and injured knuckles calmly.

“I’m…sorry for last night…” He sighed, sorrow deep in his tone. “I fucked it up, as always.”

“You didn’t.”

Corey and Sallie looked at each other at once, and Sallie smiled kindly. “I had the best fucking night of my life…and I spent every moment of it with my best friend…I _so_ wanna go to _Stairways_ again, and I wanna see _Slipknot_ again! Clown was so fucking lovely!”

The glee in her features lightened Corey’s spirits a little.

“Yeah, Clown is fucking awesome. Crazy, but damn awesome.” His eyes glanced at her bruised knuckles again, running a thumb over them and he turned back to her. “You hit Jodie…didn’t you?”

Sallie decided against answering him, but her silence and expression told him everything. With a disappointed sigh, he moved his hand from hers, and she felt a pang of ache from it. How was he disappointed when she had stood up for him? Perhaps he had forgotten or wasn’t aware of anything during that very moment, but she knew what she did was right, and even with her little brutal side coming out, which was entirely an accident waiting to happen, she just…

…didn’t understand Corey’s lack of appreciation for it.

“I’m not sorry…” Sallie said honestly. “Jodie had it coming.”

Corey said nothing, shuffling onto the sofa so that he was leaning forward, his forearms resting on his thighs as his fingers interlocked together around the neck of the bottle. He stared blankly at the floor.

Sallie didn’t like that. Slouching uncomfortably now, she thought about something. “I hated how she was treating you…”

“I know…”

“I just don’t think it was fair that-”

“I was gonna ask her to marry me.”

Sallie physically winced back, her eyes huge, the shock of hot tears stinging her eyes, and she wasn’t quick enough to hide it. Corey turned and saw them. The tears confused him.

“Corey, you can’t-”

“I want to.” He said firmly. “She is the light of my life…”

“She’s a fucking cunt.”

A darkness unexpectedly flickered onto Corey’s face, a storm in his eyes that immediately terrified Sallie, and she swiftly leapt off the sofa, stepping away from Corey. And to her apprehension, Corey stood up too, quickly shooting onto his feet, his eyes hard on her.

“Why the fuck do you hate her so much?” He asked in a low, deep voice.

“Why the fuck do you _love_ her so much?!” Sallie snapped back, almost without thinking. Corey’s endless dedication to a faithless woman simply unspeakable. When Corey took a step towards her, Sallie staggered back, keeping her distance from Corey.

“I fucking _love_ her!” Corey screamed, his eyes huge with wrath as he swung the bottle at Sallie. She ducked and held her head in protection, narrowly avoiding the bottle and felt it shatter against the wall behind her, trickles and splashback from the alcohol sprinkling onto her back. When she looked up from her arms, Corey was now before her, blocking out the entire world, the apartment disappearing around them.

It got dark suddenly.

Sallie felt her phone buzz in her pocket, but the situation made her completely forget about it. Corey was up against her, intense and furious.

“You can’t marry a fucking cheater, Corey! You won’t be fucking happy with that!”

“I _am_ fucking happy! You’re not my Mom, so fuck off with this, Sal!”

That was a lie. Corey wasn’t happy because Sallie could feel it. Each word he spat was venomous, acidic and hurtful, breaking what little strength Sallie had already.

“You can’t marry her! I won’t let you marry her!”

“Oh, why?! Why the fuck not?! Is it because you want _this?!_ ” Corey pushed his hips out at her, his hands running up his naked chest, his fingers flicking at his pierced nipples and nails raking at the celestial tattoo on his chest. His eyes were ferocious, however, his little lewd dance of being wanted making it seem more threatening. “You can’t have Corey Motherfucking Taylor! So you _have_ to fucking ruin _my_ dreams!”

“Hey! That’s _not_ the case!”

And when Corey leaned down, his face so close to hers, he spoke those sickening words:

“You’re as fucking twisted as that Sam…”

Sallie stared, the shock of Corey’s hurtful words made her lose her voice, lose her train of thought, and by the time Corey thought back about what he said, the hurting was already done. Tears sprung from Sallie’s eyes, but her brows furrowed so deeply, the look of a heartbroken thunder in her features.

Her teeth clenched, and chattered, but two small words managed to slide out…

“Get…out…” She hissed between held breaths, not giving Corey enough time when she slapped her palm into his face and pushed him back, forcing him away from her. “Get out of my _fucking face!_ ”

Corey stumbled back against the sofa, and he caught himself. Barely. He turned to see Sallie storming towards the door, and he lunged at the door, looming over the small woman and pushed his weight onto it, holding the door closed so that she couldn’t escape.

“Don’t you _fucking_ dare-!”

A sharp jab hit the pit of his stomach, knocking the wind out of his lungs and he gasped, eyes wide to see Sallie stabbing her elbow into his stomach. It was enough to make him back away, and Sallie swung the door open. Corey barely managed to utter an oath when Sallie turned and faced him.

And her expression was _haunting_.

She looked like she was about to say something, but either didn’t have the heart or didn’t wish to waste her time and breath on this man anymore, and without another word, just a despairing look of a shattered bond, Sallie turned and slammed the door behind her, leaving Corey behind.

Corey stood there for a long time, watching the door, waiting for Sallie to come back crying and running into his arms. Friends have fights all the time, that’s why they forgive and forget…

…but when it was beginning to look as though Sallie wasn’t coming back, Corey was washed with a deadly coldness he had never felt before.

“I just…got…left behind…”


	19. Confessions

**__ **

**__ **

**_Hey Sal, hope you slept ok? How is Corey?_ **

**_-Shawn_ **

The instant she saw that text Sallie howled crying, throwing her screaming face into her hand and sobbed treacherously.

She hadn’t run too far from Corey’s apartment, just enough to gather space from him, and far away enough to be away from prying eyes.

She had found herself in _Pappajohn Sculpture Park_ , a free grassy land open to the public. The heavy downpour of rain washed the park clean, raindrops glistening on the stunning sculptures that dotted around the park. And thankfully, no one was stupid enough to walk in the storm.

Sallie didn’t care.

She sat beneath one of the many famous sculptures, an elongated and crooked-looking spider with an egg-sack hanging from its underbelly, an unsettling yet deeply passionate symbol of motherhood devoted to the artist’s mother. Despite Sallie’s genuine fear in spiders, she felt drawn towards this statue, and was now curled in a ball beneath it, her legs drawn to her chest as she sobbed into her knees. Rain dripped from its knobbly knees and spindly legs, but it seemed to have protected her from the rain.

Above her, the skies were grey, sheets of rain lashing across Des Moines.

The poisonous words Corey had said to Sallie stuck in her mind, and with a whimper she tried to take them out. But they persisted and stuck inside of her skull. And even in her frustration and depression she had punched her own skull several times to try and knock it out physically, but she was only granted with more agony, more pain…just self-punishment.

“Why…the fuck…did he…?” Sallie whimpered, only to burst out crying again, unable to withstand the next tremendous wave of hurt.

Her one little sunshine, her little speckle of hope, her _Faith_ …he just turned against her and stood up for the wrong person…why was it so fucking hard for Corey to see where the _fuck_ she was coming from? Was he really that fucking desperate?!

It took Sallie a long moment to send a text back, assuming that Shawn will too abandon her.

**_No. I fucked everything up._ **

Once it was sent, she stared at the neon screen for a time.

_You’re just as twisted as that Sam…_

There it was again.

Her eyes sharpened at her Nokia, her fingers clenching onto it so hard it shook viciously, and she lifted her hand in the air with the intention of throwing her Nokia at the floor aggressively, wanting to hear it shatter, just to relieve some hurting…

But she hesitated, and it was enough to convince her that it wasn’t the right thing to do. She tucked her phone back into her pocket with a sorrowful sigh. Her clothes plastered against her body, feeling Corey’s hoodie latch onto her. It was keeping her dry for a time, but just like its owner, it betrayed her, and rainwater began to seep through the thick cotton. Her arms were drenched, and her hair was saturated against her skull.

“What’s so fucking special about fucking fucktard?!” Sallie hissed against the sleeve, her eyes now becoming cruel as she glared across the empty park. That was good. She didn’t want _anyone_ near her. Not right now.

Sallie looked up to the raining skies, seeing the grey clouds darkened, as if to match her current state. “What’s so amazing about her, mum?” Sallie asked softly, trying to transmit a desperate plea to her deceased mother. “Corey deserves better, yet he latches onto her like a fucking virus…even after all he’s seen...is he…”

Her head dropped.

_You fucking dumbass. Corey wouldn’t fucking want you anyway. You’re unattractive and stupid and gross and unwanted…_

Sallie stared at the floor, watching puddles form, rippling at the dance of the rainfall.

_Sam was right…_

A defeated sensation purged through Sallie, shattering what was left of her, and for once, she was clueless in what to do. She was even more lost. While she had Corey to take her to new places and wonderful sights, an underworld of new life that was just perfect for her…she was now lost and alone, her only best friend, her only reason for even still being alive…

…He was gone.

_It’s because I’m not pretty…it’s because I’m fucking ugly, and useless…maybe if I were to shag every fucking thing in this damn city, I might get given shit for free on a silver platter…_

With a snort, Sallie looked away, resting her cheek onto her cold, soaked arms.

_Nah…mum didn’t bring you up like that. You need to keep going! Keep fighting…_

“When is it going to end, though?” Sallie whimpered to herself, her own thoughts arguing and giving her no comfort. “I’m so…fucking… _tired_ …”

Her phone buzzed again. And for a long time, Sallie had considered not checking it out. But she got more curious and eventually gave in, pulling her phone out and glaring at it.

_**Where are you, Sal? I’ll come meet you. Corey’s having a meltdown about Jodie??** _

Sallie’s lips tightened, texting the Clown back.

_**Corey is…** _

She paused, and she erased her message and replied back.

_**I’m in Pappajohn Sculpture Park under the Spider…don’t tell Corey please.** _

When the Clown replied with a simple ‘Ok’, Sallie tucked her phone away and remained sitting there, her eyes closed.

_When will this shitstorm end…?_

_Why won’t you let me join you mum?_

And under the punishing downpour, Sallie cried into her arms again, the sight of a defeated woman dispiriting.

* * *

The Clown was in complete disarray when he got to the park in the centre of Des Moines, and sight of the broken woman that cowered under the Spider sculpture was just as disheartening. He got a multitude of text messages from Corey, ranging from Jodie to Sallie to baguettes?

Shawn had no clue what Corey was trying to say. But he sent out a few of their friends to come and check on him, while the Clown went to find Sallie. Surrounding an emotional woman with many intimidating strangers would not be a good idea…

He was relieved to have found her, and he squatted before her. She didn’t move, though he knew she was aware of his presence.

“Hey Sal…” Shawn called softly. “You don’t have to talk now, but let’s get out of this rain.” He saw how her clothes were now completely drenched, a soft sheen on their fabric surface, and he knew she had been out here for some time. When he placed a hand on her arm, he even felt the terrifying chill from beneath. “Let’s get out of this rain before you die on me.”

_Would it fucking matter…?_

And regardless of that thought, Sallie obeyed Shawn and stood up wordlessly.

Shawn took Sallie to a café around the corner at the edge of the park, _Ritual Café,_ and there, Shawn ordered Sallie a cup of tea and himself a coffee. That’s what Brits like though, right?

Sallie was more of a coffee drinker, it turned out, but she eagerly accepted the tea. And soon she finally poured her heart into what happened. Shawn was a very good listener, his hands clasped together, and his eyes regarded her deeply. It was most peculiar, how such a hyper sadistic and charmingly scary Clown actor could be so lovely, so understanding and warm. Shawn understood Sallie’s pain, particularly when she explained to him who Sam was.

“Corey…mentioned that bitch to me a few times.” Shawn admitted softly. “He goes on full rants about how that bitch treats you. He’s pretty fucking mad at her.”

“I can imagine,” Sallie murmured, doubt in her tone. She leaned back into her chair, her eyes looking into the steaming tea. “I don’t know what to do about Jodie…” Sighing, Sallie scratched the back of her head, her eyes searching for any sort of answer. And found none. “I’m tempted in just killing her off.”

Shawn chuckled softly.

“I…wouldn’t suggest it.” He paused for a time, tilting his head at the little woman. “Hey, I know you’ve only known each other for a few months now but…you like Corey?”

“Of course, I like him…he’s my friend-”

“Nah,” Shawn grinned then. “Like _like_ him?”

Sallie looked up back at Shawn, her expression blank and so drained. Shawn was disappointed, and honestly a little unease to see no reaction.

“I like Corey as a friend.”

The Clown was _certain_ she was lying. She was just being very good at hiding it. She was doing exactly what he does and close off all emotions and issues with anyone when he was in a bad state.

“Surely you want to fuck him?” Shawn said bluntly, trying to scare this closed persona off.

“He’s my best friend…I can’t do that to him.”

“You _could_ have slept with him last night. Missed opportunity right there.”

“Yeah, well...I didn’t want to appear as creepy and as _that girl_ ,”

“You’re not just a Jodie that’ll sleep with anyone.”

Sallie said nothing, but her gaze dropped. She looked so defeated, and it upset Shawn to find such a lovely woman change overnight. She had far more issues than she let on, and one day, he’ll find them.

“I just…don’t understand what he sees in her.”

“I do.”

The little Brit looked at Shawn, expecting him to be smirk in pride and ready to give her newfound information. But instead he was just frowning, like herself.

“Corey is afraid of being alone. He doesn’t like the idea of being alone, and so he sticks with Jodie because she seems to be the only one that’d date him.” A smirk cocked at his lips as he added: “Hence why I asked if you _liked_ Corey. I can shove you both on a blind date.”

He was rewarded with a small smile, but that was it. Shawn continued. “But basically, Corey thinks he’s unlovable and unwanted, so he dates with Jodie just to make him feel like a valued man. Sure, he too can just fuck with anyone…but to have that genuine companionship…” Shawn’s shoulders dropped. “He…finds it so hard to look for…”

“I could go with that companionship…” Sallie murmured, her eyes looking away from Shawn, staring into mid-space now.

“See? I could force you two to date, it’d be perfect! I’d rather he has you than that slut-”

“Corey wants to marry her…”

The Clown stalled, and Sallie slowly looked at him, her eyes full of plead. “Why…?”

Shawn had to think for a long moment and decided to take this instant to ask Sallie again.

“You _really_ like him, don’t you?”

Sallie stared back at Shawn, her eyes weakening now as he watched her carefully.

She dropped her gaze and said nothing.

But that was okay.

Shawn knew the answer already.


	20. A Dangerous Masterplan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING:   
> +Vague reference of rape, but trust me. <3

Shawn had insisted Sallie in coming with him. _Slipknot_ were gathering back at one of the band member’s homes, preparing for their next live appearance. A guy called Paul, to which Shawn explained that it was the pig-man on Bass during their show.

Sallie sat at the passenger seat, staring at the window again as she had done last night. The ride was quieter now, with no drunken Corey behind them threatening to vomit all on Shawn’s seats. Shawn felt the silence as a moment of relief for both him and Sallie, but from glancing at the roads to make sure they were clear, he could see Sallie looking so disheartened. Her mind evidently crammed with thoughts about what Corey had said, and even then-

“Is it really that obvious?”

Shawn glanced at her again, his eyes focusing on the road, but he was aware of what she said, and he chuckled.

“Sure is.” He remarked, taking a sharp turn and narrowly avoiding a stupid moron walking across the road without looking. “Asshole!” He hissed under his breath.

Sallie seemed a bit stirred up with his answer, and she sat up in her seat, looking at him with a small glint of worry.

“Shit, it’s not, right? You’re just arsing around with me! Corey and I are just best friends.”

Shawn had a smirk on his face. When the lights turned red, Shawn carefully halted behind another waiting car, and leaned back, tapping his hands on the steering wheel.

“I’m just very observant, I see and watch people. Best thing about wearing masks.” He fully turned to her and his grin widened. “The way you took care of Corey last night was one of fucking love. A best friend would leave their friend on the street and laugh about it the next day. But _you_ ,” He sniggered softly, slowly looking back to the road, eyeing up a woman that walked beside them, her white dress not doing a good job hiding her black panties. “It’s something else. You took care of that man as if you _were_ dating.”

“But we’re not dating.”

“I know.” Shawn nodded. “And Corey is too fucking stupid to even notice your kindness. He’s just not _used_ to it. Even Paul was fucking confused by it...Never seen someone drop their night-out to care for someone like him.” He snorted, shaking his head. “I bet he doesn’t remember much from last night, how you stayed with him as he fucking passed out, his fucking bitch just fucks with anyone and…” Shawn paused, calming down a frustration that grew with his tone. He sighed deeply as he started again. “Corey’s funny, man. He’s really funny, but it’s a mask to hide a depressed man wanting to kill himself.” He said this mournfully, his gaze looking at his foot, tapping it softly on the accelerator and revving his engine impatiently. These lights took fucking forever… “Just like how you’re hiding your own demons.”

Sallie jolted. Shawn carried on, knowing what she was thinking. “I see these things. I see it all the fucking time, Sal. And…” His tone darkened slightly, the lights finally changing colour. The car pushed on, driving out of the city and further ahead in the highway. “The happiest ones are always the people that are struggling themselves. They know how low someone can be, and therefore they don’t wish for anyone to feel that low. So, they try to make everyone happy, they try to protect them, and they’re the same fuckers who tuck their drunk friends into bed and hold their dreads up while they vomit.” He gave Sallie a pained smile, one of deep understanding, and his words struck a chord inside of her. “I can tell you really like Corey, because you care for him so much. Seeing you fucking sitting outside, in the pissing rain, _crying_ over a moron like him…that’s because he hurt you, and it pains how you are devoting yourself to care for a mess like him, and yet you persist in wanting to help him. Because I _doubt_ you’d stop talking to him. Because of a stupid insult he probably only _just now_ realised what it meant to you.” He pointed his thumb over his shoulder, pointing at Corey’s apartment in the midst of the descending city of Des Moines behind them.

It took Sallie a moment to finally tear her eyes away from Shawn, glancing at the passing cars as Shawn hammered his car down the road, charging to their destination. She was still silent, which was okay with Shawn. She was considering what he said. “I can tell you’ve been through so much shit…even if I don’t know it…you’ve lost someone so close to you, and your life had been spiralling out of control since then…so when you found that connection with Corey, when you found that same wavelength of depression and desperation to get out of that world, you clung onto him, you protected him and you’re so fucking vigilant with his shitty-ass girlfriend, _knowing_ he deserves better…” Shawn reached into the small compartment in front of Sallie, opening it fluidly and pulling out a packet of cigarettes, closing it with the same hand and reclined back in his seat. He had done that far too many times. He hesitated, realising that he had a guest in the car with him. Wanting to respect her space, he tossed the cigarette packet onto his dashboard. He’ll smoke some when he arrives at Paul’s house. “Thing is, Corey believes he doesn’t deserve any better. He believes he deserves the worst…”

“How can I convince him that he deserves so much more?” Sallie pleaded hoping Shawn could give her answers.

“I’d say fuck his dick so hard you fucking break it, but…” He snorted at his own joke, coming down with a storm of spite suddenly. “He probably needs to check himself out after the shit Jodie pulls…”

The idea of Corey being infected by Jodie’s nastily plagued pussy made Sallie cringe hard, emitting a noise of disgust that amused Shawn, and the Clown laugh. “I’d totally use that noise as a sound effect in a song.”

“I’m serious, Clown.” Sallie appealed again after she recovered from that gross mental image. “I want to help him. I want to _save_ him…”

“I know…we all do…but if he can’t help himself,” Shawn shrugged. “How can we? All we can do is guide him.”

“I’ll fucking save him! I won’t fucking lose him! This world won’t take him away from me.”

Sallie stared hard at Shawn, the iron determination in her tone reassured Shawn of something he was worried about.

But then he smiled, warmly. He wasn’t worried anymore.

“Who did you lose?”

That comment was a little random, but Sallie quickly noticed why Shawn had asked that, and she settled back in her seat.

“My mum. Died when I was twelve. She had a drinking problem which took her, but…I felt so powerless when I found out. I had _seen_ her destroy herself and I did fuck all to help…”

“I’m sorry, Sal…You were only a kid. You didn’t know.” Shawn had repeated the same speech that many others have said to her. But his tone and words comforted her in a way that no one really had. And for once, she smiled sadly at that, agreeing.

“Everyone always says that…but you seem to be better at this.”

Shawn glanced at Sallie, and they shared a smile together.

“We’ve both been through some shit. _All_ of us at Slipknot, and you. The music we make is what we need, it helps us with everything. That’s…the reason why I was asking Corey in becoming our singer.”

“Did Corey ever come back to you on that?”

Shawn sighed deeply, his eyes returning to the road.

“Nah, not yet. But he’ll comply soon.”

That statement was a little daunting, though Sallie dismissed it. Shawn had known Corey for much longer than Sallie, so she was aware that he probably knew how Corey worked. She was still learning.

Sallie watched the skies, seeing how they seemed to have cleared the further they left the city. That was weird, it was as if the whole city was always under constant depression. Yet, the sun was beaming hotly through the darkened rainstorm.

“So, your old singer…? Jay?” Sallie piped up.

“Uh huh?”

“Why did you guys do not want him in the band anymore?”

Shawn tutted and shook his head, huffing a little angrily at the thought of the man.

“Jackass keeps wanting to fuck every woman and isn’t attending rehearsals and shit. He just wants the fame…whatever the fuck _that_ is.” He blinked. “Plus, he fucked Mick’s now ex-girlfriend.”

“ _What?!_ ”

“I know, right?! I’m surprised Mick hasn’t fucking destroyed him.”

Sallie tutted in loathing, folding her arms and looked away.

“He should have. He’s just a male version of Jodie. Tried to fuck me a few times, but I declined every one of them.”

“Ha! I bet that destroyed his ego! He think’s he’s God’s fucking gift and that every woman wants his dick.”

“Well, I happily proved him that I don’t want it.”

“Nah, but you want Corey’s.” Shawn smirked, and spying Sallie’s look of horror, he laughed as the little woman slapped his arm.

“Hey! Don’t you dare do that to me!”

“Oh no, sister!” Shawn burst out laughing, holding a finger at her. “We’re at _that_ level now! We’re fucking friends, and I can fucking pick on you as much as I like!” He grinned, his expression of warm appreciation regardless, and Sallie smirked too, snorting at his comment.

“I didn’t give you permission for this shit…”

“You have. The moment you said ‘Shawn, you’re my best friend’, that was it. The contract was signed!”

“But I…never said that to you, did I?”

Shawn stalled, blinking, suddenly forgetting.

“Say what?”

“Shawn, you’re my best friend.”

With a giddy slap on his steering wheel, Shawn hollered in victory, pointing at Sallie.

“ _HA!_ Made you say it!” And Sallie’s eyes went huge with awareness that she fell for the oldest trick in the book.

“ _FUCK!_ ”

And Shawn tittered harder, his giggles contagious that even Sallie found herself laughing at her stupid mistake. Shawn had such a lovely laugh, almost clownish by nature, a real chuckler. His stage persona suddenly made sense. He _was_ the class Clown. He was the joker, the trickster, the jester. And most of all, he was the chuckler when the strongest people fell and needed hope.

And that’s where Sallie and Corey came into it.

Once the laughter was cleared, Shawn waved a hand, catching his breath.

“Right, we should be at Paul’s in five minutes time. So, in the meantime,” He paused dramatically, holding a hand up as if he was speculating about the existence of humanity, and added: “What _is_ Corey’s Bread bank?”

The plain question made Sallie laugh again, leaning back in the seat and got comfortable. This was going to be interesting to recite.

“Well…I woke up to a strange noise…”

* * *

Shawn was constantly laughing. Laughing so hard his face became red, tears sheening his eyes, choking on his own breath.

Even when he parked in front of Paul’s house, a small building in the middle of nowhere, he was still laughing at the steering wheel, unable to compose himself.

“Fucking hell!” Shawn covered his face, laughing hysterically as his words got tangled with his clown-like chuckles. “So, let me get this straight: He fucking owns a bread bank and tried to sell you gluten free bread?!” He howled harder, punching a fist at the steering wheel, one hand holding at his ribs. “Fuck, what the fuck is gluten?”

“I don’t fucking know!” Sallie giggled, her cheeks an adorable ting of pink, the most colour they’ve ever had in years. “Don’t know where the fuck he got that from!”

It took the Clown and the Brit a little while to finally calm down, wiping tears from their eyes and calming their throats and lungs down from the constant laughing.

“Fuck me, that’s so fucking dumb.” Shawn panted, closing his eyes and giggled again at the thought. He finally shook his head. “Right,” He cleared his throat, composing himself promptly. “This is Paul’s home! Well, his ma’s home, but she’s visiting family out town. So he has this place to himself. The rest of _Slipknot_ should be there.” Shawn went to open the door, and he stopped.

“You okay?”

Shawn said nothing for a time, his mind processing on a question he had. A plan he had brewing since he received Sallie’s text. It was all in the works, and now Sallie simply needed to comply.

“Yeah…uh…” He turned back to her, dropping his voice as if needing to. “Listen, Sal…I want you to promise me something.”

Sallie felt a little intense at that request, but she nodded once.

“What’s up?”

“Whatever happens in that house, _stays_ with us. Okay?”

“Yes sir!”

“But also…” Sallie tilted her head, listening carefully. Shawn grabbed her hand and held it firmly into his own meaty hands. “ _Trust_ me…”

“Trust you?”

“Uh huh.”

“But…” She narrowed her eyes, wondering where this came from. Something was going to happen. “Why are you asking me this?”

Shawn gave her a small smile, one that begged for her forgiveness, and a dangerous glint came into his eyes.

“If we’re gonna make this work, you have to work with me. You have to trust me.” He leaned towards the backseats, leaning down and reaching for the footwells behind them. Sallie watched as Shawn returned, and he was holding a thick, heavy thing.

A black bag, one that was perfect to…

Sallie studied it, and gradually she looked up at Shawn, her eyes slowly inching towards panic.

“Trust me…please…” Shawn pleaded softly. “I promise you that you won’t be hurt. This…is a test. For both of you.”

“Both of-” Her sentence was cut off when Shawn suddenly hung the black hood over her head, and she reached for his wrists, instinctively trying to stop him.

The world blackened.

The Clown wanted to comfort the little woman, but he knew it wouldn’t help. He needed the _real_ deal. Sallie reached for the tie that tightened around her throat, an attempt in removing the hood and to scream at Shawn. But her wrists were suddenly snatched, and she felt the harsh plastic bind of zip-ties locking around her wrists, and she whimpered, her heart lunging in her throat and fluttering madly.

Sallie couldn’t see, but she felt the Clown yanking her out of the car, closing the door behind him and heaved the small body over his shoulder, holding her and he was walking. Sallie presumed he was walking to Paul’s house. Maybe there was a secret she couldn’t witness because she wasn’t inside the Slipknot circle, but she was still apprehensive. She would have happily played along if Shawn explained to her what was happening.

But the Clown was being difficult, and even with her screams, he ignored her, knocking on the door. Sallie’s body was vibrating with adrenaline, the Clown’s shoulder digging into the pit of her stomach, and she was starting to lose control of her anxiety.

_Trust me…_

_How can I?! I don’t fucking know what’s happening-!_

She heard the door open, and a voice spoke.

“Hey Clown.” Deep, male, from Des Moines… A pause. “Does she know?”

“Sort of.” The Clown spoke with a shrug. “I’m just gonna spook her.”

“This isn’t fucking funny, Shawn! What the fuck is going on?!”

Sallie was already giving into her feral panic, and no one answered. All she could do was watch with her ears…

Shawn walked inside of the building, someone leading him the way, their feet tapping on creaking floorboards. The scent of heavy smoke and alcohol stinging the air, and even through the hood Sallie could smell it.

“No! Fuck off!” A voice exclaimed suddenly, and a sudden smash occurred.

Someone threw something at the wall. And Sallie stopped struggling when she heard the voice.

“Hey, dude, this is my fucking home. Don’t destroy shit!” The man that opened the door snarled angrily. This was possibly Paul…

Sallie held her breath and listened.

“No Paul, _you_ fucking stop this!”

Shawn heard Sallie shudder a sigh and he knew that she was aware that Corey was in the same room. Shawn took a few more steps and halted. “I’m not fucking doing this! I’m done with this…” Corey’s voice trailed off, and in the darkness, Sallie could feel his eyes on her. She could even hear his teeth gritting in his voice. “Clown, knock this shit off. Is that-”

“Yep.” Shawn piped up proudly, adjusting Sallie as if showing off his latest slaughter. “Found her fucking crying in that Sculpture park!” His voice seemed to have changed into one of vindictiveness, and it made Sallie’s skin grow cold, her palms sweating and clammy. One side of her throat tightened and ached.

Sallie shrieked suddenly when she felt a terrible spank on her ass, and her hands clenched.

“Stop it, Shawn!” She screamed, her voice full of dread, feeling the sexual contact and hating it.

“She’s got a plump ass too, don’t you think, Corey?”

“Dude, let her go.” Corey sighed, and Sallie heard him taking a deepening drag from his cigarette, the ashes forming and crinkling in the air. “Why the fuck did you bring her here, anyway?”

“I dunno.” Shawn shrugged again. “I liked what I saw last night and wanted to have fun. I mean,” He nodded his head to one side. “Mick is pretty fucking mad.”

Sallie’s blood was slowing down, the dread surging uncontrollably in her skull. The darkness was starting to form patterns before her eyes.

There was a pause. The tension in the silence killing her.

“I’m gonna be nice, Corey.” Shawn sneered, walking around now, walking to the right, and seemed to be circling the man. “I’ll let Mick deal with her.”

“What are you fucking talking about?!” Sallie squealed again, panic raw in her tone, and the voice of a terrifying little woman going through Corey, even through his yet again intoxicated consciousness. There was something so primal about that voice that sliced through his drunken haze.

Sallie felt Shawn grabbed her hips, and with a heave, he practically threw Sallie into another pair of hands. The hands were huge, strong and when she was lifted, her small body was brought higher. This was Mick. The taller man on stage last night. She felt him holding onto her possessively.

“Mick’s had some shit with Jay, and he needs a release, so I thought Sallie would do the trick.”

A hand grabbed onto Sallie’s face, making her whimper against the bag, and she felt her air cut off sharply. One arm held around her tiny waist and pulled closer to the chest of Mick, feeling the behemoth clinging onto her covetously.

“What the-the fuck do you mean?” Corey slurred, his resentment deepening in his words. “Don’t you _dare_ fucking touch her!” Sallie heard Corey take a step, and unexpectedly his body fell onto the floor harshly. Someone threw him down. A bottle smashed somewhere.

“No, you fucking listen to me!” This time, the voice was Paul. “Join our band, _now!_ Stop being a fucking loser and join!”

“I don’t fucking want to!” Came the drunken snap. “Fuck you! Just let me fucking die!”

“Fine! Fucking, whatever!” Sallie heard Paul stomp around the room, huffing.

The hand pressed onto Sallie’s face didn’t ease, but she felt Mick leaning towards her ear, like he was going to say something to her. But she just felt his ominous breathing, a beard tickling at her throat and she made a strange noise of animal fear.

_This was a sick joke! It must be!_

“Cor…ey…” Sallie barely managed to whine, on instincts, and she heard Corey struggling to get up from the floor. It sounded like Sallie was crying now.

“W-Why fucking pick Sallie too?! She’s done nothing!” Corey yelled, and Shawn sniggered.

“Because no one wants to touch that whore.”

That was a dig at Jodie. They all felt it, even Sallie.

Someone stood beside Mick now, and a hand slapped his arm, patting him.

“Go fuck with her, Mick.” Paul. “Bedroom’s on the left upstairs.”

And Sallie screamed when she felt Mick move suddenly, turning and walking out of the room. Kicking her legs in the air, she was now thrashing in Mick’s arm, the hand pulling her close to his head now, presenting her helplessness to Corey.

“Let her fucking _go!_ ” Corey bellowed, and Sallie yelped when she felt someone grabbing her wrists and recognised those hands as Corey. Mick moved swiftly with an aggression Sallie had seen on stage, and he snatched Sallie away from Corey.

Hands grabbed onto Sallie’s wrist desperately again, her own hands trying to grab onto Corey, but then Corey screamed when Sallie was taken upstairs, and he was obviously being held down. “Fucking get _off me!_ ”

Sallie was screaming too, crying out for Corey to save her as she carried out trying to wiggle out of Mick’s arms, but he was stronger. _Far_ stronger, and held her down with an unbreakable grip, strangling and squeezing her against his towering body. He forced Sallie’s face into his chest, and her screams were muffled as she felt the man ascending upstairs.

“Why are you doing this to me?!” Sallie heard Corey yelling from downstairs.

“Because Mick needs a fucking release, and so do we all! Without a singer, we’re fucked! So, we might as well just fuck you over like you have with us!”

A door opened, and Sallie shrieked yet again, knowing what was going to happen.

“ _No! Please!_ ”

The door slammed behind her, and Sallie whimpered to feel the hand grabbing her face again, feeling it making her face Mick.

“It’s okay.” Came the deep rumble, a whisper. “I do not plan on hurting you. This is to scare Corey.”

Sallie seized her whimpering and had to think.

“I…” She panted. “To scare Corey...?”

“It’s Shawn’s sick idea. But it might knock some fucking sense in him…” He paused, hearing Corey yelling at Paul now. “Listen, just play along. I want you to be fucking _terrified_ …Trust me.”

There it was again…and Sallie suddenly realised what was happening, a complete circle of a plan to scare Corey…

“I trust you…” She whispered softly, and Mick felt a kinship with the woman. He rubbed her arm kindly.

“Thank you…”

And abruptly, Sallie was in the air. She let out a frightened scream as she felt her tied body being thrown onto the bed.

_Now I understand…_

Sallie let her primal instincts run, and she was already screaming at the top of her voice, crawling onto her knees and attempted to move, but Mick snatched at her ankle and pulled her towards him, his hand grabbing onto her arm, and he threw her onto the bed again, making it evident that the bed was moving…from what, Corey wouldn’t know, but the imagination is a beautiful yet terrifying thing…

“ _Stop it! Stop it!_ ” Sallie played along, making sure her voice was unmissable, feeling the bed jolted against the hard throws. Mick lifted her small body again, and she accidently slipped out a small giggle. “This is rather fun…” Sallie whispered, and the hidden tall guitarist sniggered.

“I know.” He whispered back, throwing her onto the bed again, and she felt herself coming to the edge, and she rolled off, making her body hit the floor. She tried to get up, the impending doom of Mick’s stomps naturally injecting her with terror, and she screamed again when she blindly crawled into Mick’s shins. He grabbed her arms, a bit too hard, and she yelped in pain.

Suddenly, a knock.

“Yo, Mick. Corey’s fucking came to his senses…it worked.”

_It worked…_

Mick’s grip softened, and Sallie’s panic diminished.

“Thank fuck for that…” Mick muttered to himself, bringing Sallie to her feet gently. “I’m sorry…for the fright.”

“It-It’s fine…” She said despite the shaking. “I understand but…a warning would have been nice…”

“That’s Shawn for you. He wanted the real deal, and it worked.” Mick smirked, untying the rope around her neck and removed the hood, revealing Mick to Sallie.

Mick was unmasked.

It was bizarre. Mick was daunting, sure. But it was nothing like how his mask preceded her to believe. He had brilliant black hair, straight and it fell in flows over his shoulders, chest-length. And just from what she imagined, he had a thick beard with a square, wide jaw. Intense slate-blue eyes stared back at her, and he was far broader in person so up-close, his body towering and built like a bodybuilder, a wide chest, arms like tree trunks. He was smiling at her, sharing his victory with Sallie, and she reflected a smile back, relieved more than anything.

She looked distressed from the situation, her eyes red with tears, her hair a mess, and when they heard the sound of a drunken man running up the stairs, stumbling, Mick’s smile dropped, his eyes hard at the door and he immediately backed away, leaving Sallie alone.

Corey threw himself at the door, opening it, barely catching himself as he came to the scene, and he studied the incident. Sallie wasn’t harmed. Thank fuck…

Sallie saw his face, and somehow it brought back what had happened a few hours ago. Those words he said, and she crumbled with emotion, still hurting.

“Sal...” He whimpered desperately, and he ran into the room and suddenly snatched her up in his arms. Sallie clung onto Corey, burying her face into his shoulder as the dreadlocked man held onto her, hushing her. She could smell alcohol in his breath and smoke on his clothes.

Corey began to sob. “I’m sorry…I’m so sorry…I’m so sorry…please don’t…don’t leave me again…”

Sallie closed her eyes, holding onto Corey firmly, and she soon began to cry to the sounds of his mourning. He was shaking hard, holding onto her avidly.

“It’s okay…it’s okay…” She whispered back to his dreadlocks.

Shawn came into the scene, smirking in pride at his handy work, leaning on the door and folded his arms. Another man followed behind him, black short hair with a bit of stubble, black eyeliner around his small eyes. Paul Grey.

Mick turned to the other two and slowly shook his head, silently disagreeing that there was a better way of getting Corey to join the band, of getting him to appreciate Sallie, but Shawn gave him in infamous _‘I-Don’t-Give-A-Fuck’_ shrug.

It worked at the end of the day…


	21. Cold

**__ **

**__ **

**_I’m still so sorry about the way I treated you. Please forgive me, I lost my shit and couldn’t handle anything. It was the fucking drink talking._ **

_No, I get it. But you should probably not drink so much. I don’t like seeing you like that._

**_It’s so fucking hard to break…I rely on it more than myself…_ **

_You don’t need alcohol to survive._

**_It helps kills the pain though…_ **

_You’re not killing it. You’re simply numbing it, and eventually that method will be abused enough and take a toll on you…please, I can’t…lose you too._

**_I know…I’m so sorry…I never meant to even call you that bitch’s name. It just came out._ **

_It’s okay. You were angry, and drunk. And this is why I need you to stop drinking so much. I don’t want to see you destroy yourself…TALK TO ME. I want to help you. Please don’t be scared, I won’t judge, and I won’t talk down to you. You’re my best friend, and we’ll get through this shit together._

**_Thanks, Sal._ **

**_Y’know, I enjoyed having you staying over at my place last night. It was actually nice having some company at home, to hear a voice that wasn’t mine. Care to stay over again, maybe this weekend?_ **

_I would love to. And let’s ACTUALLY play video games!_

**_LOL, yea. I would like that._ **

Sallie smiled warmly at that text, her thumbs already brushing against the buttons of her Nokia, eager in replying to the text. Even when it was basic sentences on a screen, the fact that it came from Corey made her feel a bit relieved.

After the incident, despite his emotional reunion with her, Corey seemed a bit off with Sallie, either destroyed by the realization of his life, or by alcohol. Still, his text messages were coherent and made sense, so she prayed that he was sober. But something felt so _cold_ …

Corey seemed to have been avoiding her more so now. She didn’t stay at Paul’s for too long. They had band practise, and Corey was going to prepare himself in his new, forced position in _Slipknot_. She understood that he had a lot going on in his head, and that was why she was so willing to let him talk to her, otherwise those demons will chew him up and could very well end him.

She remembered Shawn’s words from the car ride. Corey was so careless, so hateful of himself that he was even willing to end his life. And Sallie felt the same, and while sometimes she wished it, it was _never_ hard enough to make it become true. She just despised herself to the point she just wished she didn’t exist, so she didn’t have to tolerate the emotional and mental agony. But Corey was a maniac, so impulsive with his actions that they sometimes terrified her.

She hesitated as she stared down at the screen. And carefully wrote her reply:

_Corey, I mean every single fucking word when I say talk to me. I want you to talk to me._

**_I know._ **

Sallie hated those short answers. She felt a strike of fury come to her, and she was trying to be careful with how she replied, not wanting her anger to seep out, but she was evidently annoyed, unable to think of anything to help him with. He was just being so difficult. Shawn had promised Sallie that he’ll keep a close eye on Corey, to make sure he was okay when the Clown was around. But even then…something about the way Corey looked, from last night at _Stairways_ from the moment back at Paul’s house, she felt uncomfortable.

Slowly, Sallie began to write her reply, but stared at the message before considering sending it.

_What’s going on with you and Jodie?_

She didn’t send it yet, her eyes judging and considering if this question was a bit too invasive. She knew the answer, but she wanted to prove herself wrong.

“Who are you texting?”

That voice of the bitch Stepmother scratched through Sallie’s thoughts, and she slowly glared up from her screen to see Sam sitting opposite to her.

Sallie had returned home that night, with Corey under Paul’s roof and the rest of the band, Sallie had decided to dismiss herself and had been texting Corey ever since. She felt too uneasy to ask him or talk to him about anything, wanting to be alone with the dreadlocked man but the house was simply too busy when the other band members came in. So, she decided to just text him instead. It wasn’t as honourable as talking to him face to face, but it was better than nothing, and the questions she had in her skull were vaguely feeling a bit of relief.

Sallie sent the message suddenly and locked her phone, tucking it into her pocket.

“Corey.” Sallie replied, her tone matching her thunderous glare.

Sam tutted, stabbing a piece of lettuce with her fork and waved it about in front of Sallie, looking like a stupid conductor.

“Can’t he leave you alone for one fucking moment when you’re at home? Or is he obsessive over you?”

_Actually, cunt, it’s the other way around…_

“There’s no law in friends talking when they’re not at work.” Sallie grilled, looking at her pot noodle container in distaste. Sam and her father had the same elaborate shitty chicken salad that they seem to be living off every day, and Sallie was left with the old abandoned food that was pot noodles, microwave meals and cheap sandwiches.

This pot noodle tasted like shite in water…no flavour.

Sallie grabbed her fork and began to stir the bland uncooked noodles in the water.

“It’s rude to be on your phone at the dinner table.” Mr Knight grumbled, seeming to share the same bad mood as his daughter. He was glaring down at his breaded chicken, his heavy brows furrowed, exhaustion marking around his eyes. His daughter had an uncannily similar appearance.

Sallie’s phone buzzed, and despite it being on _silent_ , the buzz was loud enough to be heard, and Sam glared up at the little woman as if she had just been insulted.

“Tell him to fuck off. Your life doesn’t resolve around him.”

Sallie bit her reply, shaking her head to herself and grabbed her phone, pulling it out just to peek at the text:

**I don’t want to talk about it.**

That gave Sallie a stab in her chest. She could feel the bite in Corey’s words. She pushed her phone down into her pocket, feeling it buzz again, and she pulled it out.

Shawn was calling her. A compelling urge told her to answer it.

“I need to answer this…” Sallie murmured, standing up-

“ _No!_ ” Sam snapped, standing up so suddenly. Mr. Knight wearily watched the two women before him. “You sit down and eat your food!” She saw Sallie holding her phone, and before Sallie could blink, the witch reached over and snatched the phone.

“ _Hey!_ ” Sallie screamed, instinctively reaching over the table, knocking it upwards with her knee and the drinks jolted, the glasses of wine tipping and fell off the table. Sallie’s coffee leapt from its mug and burnt at her stomach, making her whimper. It was enough time to delay Sallie, and smirking in victory, Sam looked at the phone, saw the name and answered it anyway.

“Hey, I don’t know who the fuck you are, mate, but Sallie’s trying to have her dinner. So leave her the fuck alone or I’ll…” She trailed off, listening. Sallie stood there, her hands trying to soothe her scolded flesh, pulling the drenched shirt from her body. Mr. Knight stared at his daughter, and then slowly back at Sam, his eyes asking her wordlessly if she was okay.

When Sallie snarled at Sam, she saw the woman looking a little taken back, a bit sheepish, and she lifted her finger to her lips, her eyes darting around as she listened.

“Um…pardon me, Mr. Crahan, I didn’t…” From where Sallie stood, she could hear a deep voice now vaguely shouting at Sam. Sallie couldn’t make out the words, but Sam seemed to have been stunned by the response, which was a surprise for Sallie. And embarrassedly, Sam nodded. “Yes…I apologise…H-here she is…”

Sallie was clever enough to hide her confusion, mostly because she was still furious of the invasion of privacy. Sallie snatched the phone from Sam and dismissed herself from the table, storming up in her room and locking the door.

“Shawn?” Sallie piped up once she was alone, holding the phone to her ear.

“She’s a right dirty bitch, isn’t she?”

“What the fuck did you say to her?” Sallie gasped. “I’ve never seen her so fucking taken back!”

“I just said I was your Manager and would have appreciated it if she didn’t take calls on your behalf in the future.”

Sallie smirked suddenly, impressed.

“Fuck…” She slowly sat on her bed. “You must have done it before. She looked like she shat herself, it was rather brilliant!”

“Yeah, I can imagine.” Shawn chuckled. “Um…yeah, so the reason why I called you...” Sallie said nothing, letting the Clown carry on. “You heard from Corey?”

“Yeah, we’ve been texting all night, though it’s like talking to a brick wall at the moment. He seemed…cold.”

“Hmm, that was the vibe I got from him when you left. He refused to sing. Said he wasn’t a good singer.”

“Is he?”

“Oh yes, he fucking is.” Shawn stated proudly. “Heard him sing a few times, but he’s just being a difficult dick.”

Folding her arms, Sallie sighed deeply and looked at the window.

“I wanna hear him sing…I’d love to sing for him…”

“Serenade that bitch-ass?”

Sallie snorted slightly.

“Yeah, as if I could fucking enchant him with my shit.”

She could hear Shawn scratching at his beard. He was plotting again.

“You free tomorrow, Sal?”

“I’ve got work with Corey tomorrow, but we finish at 5…”

“Great, I’ll pick you both up after work then. You can come to mine. Maybe sing or something.”

Sallie smiled weakly.

“That’s if Corey wants to join…he’s just a bit…” Sallie lost her words. “I don’t… _feel_ like he wants to see me right now…I don’t know…”

“Yeah yeah, I understand.” Shawn replied sadly.

“Shawn, I’m worried about him…he seemed really cold after this morning. I don’t know…where…I am with him.”

“Corey gets like that.”

Sallie frowned deeper, closing her eyes.

“I’m scared…I wanna see him but…”

“You don’t want to seem obsessive and suffocating.” Sallie hated how Shawn can easily read her thoughts, but it brought a little bit of comfort, for she did not have the will to say it. “Listen, come back to mine anyway. I think you’ll appreciate what I have for you.”

Sallie’s eyes lifted towards her door suddenly, glaring through it. Her mind came to a halt, and when Shawn spoke again, she returned to him, that killer instincts briefly taking control of her. “Sal?”

“Yeah, I can do that.”

Sallie’s eyes didn’t remove from the door.

That was when Sam walked away.


	22. Betrayal

The walk to work was like a funeral march.

Head down, Sallie battled against the rain that seemed to continue in this damn city. It was much lighter than the other day, but she was still assaulted by it. However, she didn’t care for it.

Sallie woke up with that same bitterness she slept with, praying that the healing of rest would remove it. But it pounced onto her the moment she opened her eyes. Music was blaring through Sallie’s headphones, the only comfort she could hold right now, for the very man that brought so much hope and contentment didn’t have an interest in her troubles.

Her jaw was aching, her teeth stinging, her mind crushing with a force of despair that didn’t release her. Her thoughts were becoming dark again, retracing her steps and wondering where she had gone wrong. Wonder what she did to deserve it.

_I tried to save him from Jodie…but was it worth it?_

**_It hurts now…but maybe this will pass…_ **

_No…it won’t…_

Her eyes stared at her boots, seeing them standing in the centre of a large pool of rainwater, gazing at her rippling reflection. Her reflection stared back at her, as if it was an alternative-reality of herself looking at her through a window, and even in that underworld she was suffering. If the reflection was supposed to promise a hopeful future, it wasn’t doing a good enough job convincing her.

A lank rope of hair hung before her eyes, reminding her of Corey’s dreadlocks.

_I fucking…care for you…and yet…_

The surge of crying rose in her chest like fire, but her own eyes were refusing to cry, unable to shred anymore tears. It was more painful now rather than relieving. And so she felt it stifling inside of her chest, a horrendous burn inside of her lungs.

_I’m sorry, Shawn…but I don’t want to see you…I don’t want to see anyone…I don’t even want to see myself-_

Sallie unexpectedly looked over her shoulder, feeling unseeing eyes watching her. She stared back at a desolate street, but eyes were watching her…she didn’t know where. It was a primal panic she had never felt before, sceptical.

Promptly, she continued her walk to work, her seething body cooling by the drenched jacket.

* * *

When Sallie arrived at work, she was expecting to see Corey by the counter, and to her disappointment, he wasn’t there as soon as she walked in.

_He’s probably in the back._

Silently, Sallie walked towards the back, reluctant in announcing her presence.

_He wouldn’t like that…_

Just as Sallie got to the back, she saw Corey slumped over the little table, his head buried in his folded arms.

“Corey…” Sallie managed to say, her eyes already scaling across the several empty beer bottles on the table, and another beer in his hand. Disappointment cracked her voice.

“Mmm…” Came the mumbling response from her supervisor. He didn’t move.

Dropping her bag on the floor, she approached him slowly, her hand reaching for the bottle in his hand, and grabbed it, tugging at it gently, hoping Corey would let her do so peacefully.

He did not.

He snatched it away from her, a muffled snarl against his sleeves.

“Corey, c’mon, get up!” Sallie whined, emotion falling in her words. She grabbed his shoulders and pull him up. He leaned back into the chair, his eyes closed, his expression of a dead man, numb and emotionless. “Hey…. hey….” That coaxed him enough to open his eyes wearily at Sallie, his eyes looking so dull, a loss of colours. It was like he was _dying_ … “Please, sober up…stop drinking…”

And quicker than an eyeblink, she snatched the bottle from him. Corey blinked, and clenched his fist only to realise then that the bottle was gone. And he whimpered, a baby without its feed. Setting the bottle far away from him, Sallie squatted beside him, her hands on his knees, her eyes huge and imploring. “Corey, _please_ , you can’t be doing this…it’s fucking killing you…” It was a tearful remark, and despite knowing her hatred towards alcohol abuse, it didn’t seem to register to the hazy consciousness of Corey. He sat there, staring into nothingness. “Corey, if Emma-”

She heard the door open, and Sallie felt a strike of terror reaching to her. Her first instincts warned her that it was their boss, but then she realised that she wasn’t due in returning until the weekend…

 _Customers. Fuck_.

“Stay here…” Sallie hissed, unable to hide her frustration with the man, and she got up, springing towards the door and forcing a smile, greeting their customers as charming as always. “Hey guys! Welcome…to….”

Sallie lost her words. She noticed strangers by the door. Four punk rockers.

They were all tall, and Sallie was taken back by their amazing hairs. Mohawks, so tall and elaborate, like peacocks showing off to their mates. The colours were staggering, of fiery reds and intense blacks, and their jackets were stunning, holding an infinite array of small, shining spikes on the shoulder-pads and collars. Fascinating. Sallie remembered seeing a few of them during the night-out in _Stairways_.

It was a bit unusual to see more than two men, unless they had intentions for a stag-night and wanted some gag gifts. That does happen here, so she assumed it was just that.

But what made her stall was the way they _looked_ at her…

One of the black-mohawked punk rockers seemed a bit broad in muscle-mass, wider and stronger, his eyes hidden behind sunglasses, and as one they were all staring at her. Even concealed, there was an aura of danger radiating off them, and Sallie felt uneasy under the nameless glare. She assumed it was the leader of the group. Sallie tried to shake the nerves off, and she gave them a nervous smile. “How…may I help you?”

“Are you Sallie Knight?” One of the punks shouted, and he watched the little woman flinch at the edge of his voice.

“Uh…”

_Don’t say it…don’t say it…_

“Yeah, that’s her.” The leader punk said in confidence, his scowl deepening, the leathers of his pants creaking as he began to walk towards her. “You’ve fucked with the wrong person, Knight.”

The sudden approach of the punk alerted Sallie, the instincts of avoiding this man immediately grasped onto her.

“W-What?” She managed to splutter, an awful chill riding up her body, the leader was persistent in coming towards her. Sallie pushed herself into the wall, watching as all the men approached her. “What are you talking about?!”

“You fucked with my little sister.” The burly punk announced, seeing the confusion riddling on Sallie’s face.

“Sister? I don’t know any sister, I…” She looked genuinely conflicted now, which amused all four punk rockers. The leader slammed his hands onto the desk loudly, making the assortment of lubricates and nipple rings topple off their display. The lead punk leaned towards Sallie, his hidden stare terrifying. Intimidating.

“You’re fucking with my sister’s boyfriend! You ruined her fucking life!”

“Sister’s boyfriend?! I haven’t fucked anyone!” Sallie piped up in fear.

“Where’s that prick, Corey?!” The leader howled, bashing his fists onto the table like an aggressive gorilla, and Sallie fell into a harsh silence, staring back at the older brother of Jodie, never knowing his existence until now…

“He’s not here…” Sallie murmured. “He’s out…”

_Leave…leave this place…_

Sallie wanted to escort them out, but her legs had stiffened to the point in made it impossible for her to move. Not that she had anywhere to go. The other three punk rockers had surrounded her, one of them standing by the little entry to behind the counter, blocking her only exit. It was at that moment that Sallie felt a low rumble of horror in the pit of her stomach.

They’re not planning on leaving. She was trapped.

The lead punk rocker pointed at Sallie slowly, his tone constricted politeness, ridiculing.

“So…you had the fucking balls to go and interrupt my little sister’s perfect relationship with trash.” He shrugged. “Yeah, he’s trash, but he made Jodie happy. And she was fine!” His tone changed suddenly, and a darkness ripped through the air. “And then came along _you_ …and had to fuck it up for her.”

“A-Actually, there are three sides to the story.” Sallie hissed, her teeth chattering.

“Three?!” The other punk rocker snorted. “Don’t you mean _two?_ ”

Sallie glanced at him.

“Three. Yours, mine and the truth.”

Agitated by the smart-ass comment, the leader punk instantly reached over for Sallie’s shirt and she squealed when she felt him seizing her and dragging her towards him over the counter, his face pressed against her head. Sallie winced grossly, feeling his lips brushing against her damp scalp.

“Oh ho! Fucking comedian here!” He shouted. “Let’s see how funny it is when I fucking do this!”

Sallie didn’t realise what had happened.

Suddenly, she was on the floor, her mind rewinding what it observed, and she came to terms that the punk rocker yanked her from over the counter and threw her aggressively across the shop. Her small body clashed onto the magazine stand bodily, and she cried out when she felt the force.

Her head was spinning, the world shuddered and when she blinked, she saw black. Leather.

They had surrounded her. Another pair of hands snatched at her shirt and swept her off the floor, her small stature powerless against the strength of Jodie’s brother. “You little fuck face! Stupid fucking British bitch!” Jodie’s brother shouted, hurling her over his head and threw her into the other punk rocker, who immediately locked her down against his body. Sallie’s screams filled the store. She could see Corey still hunched over the table, one arm cushioning his head, the other hanging down so limply.

He was unconscious.

_No! No, not again!_

Her screams were unanswered, and after that everything was simply a blur of reds and blacks. Her mind dipped into unconsciousness many times, each time she came to the surface of the wake, she felt agony. Infinite amount of pain. Punches were hurled into the pit of her stomach, her jaw aching and numb, her chin drenched.

Iron. The smell of iron so thick in her nostrils, stinging.

A boot stomped onto her wrist, again and again, the bones cracking under the power of the platform boots. She screamed again, and again. That was all she could do, that was all she could make out. No words could describe what was happening.

Her skull was disintegrating under the barrage of punches, each punch knocking a memory of what had happened, constantly wiping her recollection of why this was happening. Saliva and blood thickly scattered across the floor, the pornography magazines crumpled under the grinding of boots and gripping of hands.

Screams. More screams of animal anguish.

And yet no answers.

Her mind was collapsing.

For what felt like forever, the punk rockers were finished beating her up. The four of them spat down at the woman, marking their last move as a form of insult.

“Fuck you!” Jodie’s brother grilled, bending down and snatching a clump of Sallie’s hair. Through swollen eyes and tears, blood spots dyed her sight, she could make out a blurred face. “You try to fuck with my little sister again and I’ll fucking _kill_ you!” Throwing her back down, the burly punk rocker kicked swiftly at Sallie’s face, killing the squeals and she laid slumped on the floor.

Sallie stared through blood, her mind cutting off all communication with her agony-riddled body, as if it had finally decided that enough was enough, committing suicide and broke the woman in the process.

The punk rockers stormed out of the sex store, slamming the door behind them, and the sex store was in silence. Magazines sprawled everywhere, the displays ruined and devastated. Blood painted across the walls and floor.

The destroyed Brit laid still, trying to process what happened.

The moment of stillness dragged.

Nothing moved.

Swollen cut lips bled frantically, pooling beside her skull.

Her hand quivered as strength began to build up in it again. Using what she had left, Sallie focused on her arm, which stifled in white-hot agony, trying to move it as little and as calmly as she could. Her bleeding knuckles and torn fingernails reached for her pocket, slowly pushing her fingers inside and with some intense pain she pulled out her phone, losing strength in her fingers and threw it beside her.

Panting. Breathing, her breath strangled and broken.

She numbly unlocked her phone with one hand, her whole body began to pulse harshly in tremors. It revealed the last text from Shawn and pushing a single button she dialled his number. She should have called the police, and an ambulance…but it hurt too much…it hurt too much to get help…

Shawn answered promptly, his voice surprisingly chirpy.

“Hey Sal. Thought you were in work-!”

“Help…”

An unsettling pause.

“Sal, you okay?”

“No…he…lp…”

“Sallie, what happened?! Where are you?!”

“Work…work…”

“I-I’m on my way!” The urgency came to the Clown, and she could hear Shawn rushing. “What happened?! Talk to me.”

“Hurt…I…hurt…”

“Where’s Corey?”

Sallie whimpered; the small noise of heartache told Shawn enough.

“You fucking stay on the phone woman! I’m coming down!” Sallie closed her eyes in relief and found her eyelids to be too heavy to open again. Her consciousness was dithering away… scratching away from her. “Don’t you fucking dare sleep on me Sal! Keep your eyes open!” And Sallie whined, opening her eyes gradually. Blood caked her vision. It swirled and bled through.

“Tired…so tired…”

“I know you’re tired, Sal! Stay awake though, you can’t sleep yet!”

Sallie moved her lips, feeling the cuts splitting like crushed glass inside flesh, and she groaned wearily. Her blood-soaked fingers shook uncontrollably.

“Hurt…it hurts…fuck…”

“Ignore the pain, Sal! Focus on me! Focus on my voice!” There was the subtle sound of a car speeding behind his voice. “Sing! Sallie, you wanted to sing, right? Sing to me!”

“I…can’t…”

“Yes you can, you dumbass! Sing something to me! _Anything_!”

Sallie’s mind vaguely traced on scraps of words. None of them made sense, but she managed to spew something, her voice fractured and waning.

“ _Cycle…of life…and death supposedly…_ ”

That first line struck the Clown with a soft silence. But then he encouraged her, singing his own song to her.

“ _Goes round and round yet it stops with me_ …”

“ _Glorious…hunters_ …”

“ _Of my faith I have sinned_.”

“ _Killers…Killers are Killers_ …”

“No, you moron.” Shawn’s tone was mellow, yet there was a dreadful melancholy to it. “It’s: _Killers are Quiet_ …”

“ _Like the breath…of the wind_ …”

“Fuck, Sal…” Shawn’s smile was in his voice. “You remembered that verse so well. What a dedicated fan.”

Sallie would have smiled if she could.

But her mind was slipping, slipping so quickly, like sand through her fingers.

Shawn said something, but it was muffled in the high-pitch whines of blood that ran through her ears, and Sallie was eventually accepting this, accepting that this was it.

Sallie closed her eyes, and she barely remembered anything after that.

Only a pair of hands grabbed her shoulders…


	23. Big Brother

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to our angel brother and icon, Paul Gray. <3 A part of Slipknot and us will always be missing since your departure. We love you so very much, and we shall all see you one day. Happy heavenly birthday, Paul Gray. <3

Something was screaming. Screaming so piercingly that its disturbed Sallie out of her unconsciousness, and it turned out it was simply the rushing of blood screeching in her ears still, a horrific whine as she surfaced.

White. White everywhere.

The smell of antiseptic and bleach. So startingly sharp in her nostrils, so harsh it stung the back of her bloodied eyes.

Her body thrived with pain, but at least she wasn’t on the hard-thin carpet back at work. Softness, cotton-wool nothingness. A plush bed with fresh, crisp sheets. The large pillow cushioned her aching skull, cradling the broken pieces of what was left of her. She tried to understand where she was, and promptly took note that she was in the safety of a hospital. A machine was beeping beside her, soft and calming.

Black caught her attention, contrasting against the religious white of the room, and as she lolled her head to one side achingly, she saw a man sitting in the seat beside her. He was asleep, arms folded, his head tilted forward, chin pressed onto his chest. Beside him was an instrument, to which Sallie could vaguely understand it to be a bass by the thick strings.

Sallie studied the man for a moment, and gradually came to terms that it was Paul.

Relief came to her then. She was so terrified of being alone…

She tried to move her body, reviewing which parts were going to be the most difficult in moving. Her right arm felt numb, having no feeling in it like she had slept on it and cut the blood circulation. A small grunt escaped through her nose. Her skin felt so dry, being recently washed and disinfected, her flesh rough and raw.

Her head was in the middle of nowhere, unable to think of complex thoughts, and could only focus on one single task at a time.

_Touch. Touch…_

Her left arm felt better than her right, but it was more effort in moving it. However, Sallie insisted, wanting to hear the voice of someone friendly nearby, to stop the screams that constantly crammed in her head. Shifting carefully, feeling IV tubes implanted beneath her skin, the pipe sticking against it like silk, she raised her arm and reached for Paul.

A sorrowful whimper left as her hand barely reached the sleeping man. He was too far away.

_Wake up…wake up…_

Sallie opened her mouth to try and talk, but her throat was so dry, so raw it hurt to even breathe through it. Lying there, Sallie looked up at Paul, detailing his face and hair. Short, black, it glistened in a way that made Sallie think he had recently had a shower, looking wet. He looked incredibly peaceful that Sallie was too afraid of disturbing him. But she needed to hear a voice, she needed to know that she wasn’t dead.

Her lungs began to burn again, and she shut her eyes, focusing on herself, re-teaching how to function properly.

_Breathe…breathe…_

Her heart tightened, but it eventually relaxed when she fixated on her body, opening her eyes slowly and saw Paul again, his lip twitching in his sleep.

_I can’t reach you…_

Her eyes slid to the side table and saw an assortment of items on it. Another old Nokia that wasn’t hers, a packet of cigarettes, a couple of plectrums and a book. The book was paperback, thin.

The attention focused on the Nokia, and knowing how infamously unbreakable they were, Sallie hummed despondently at the idea she had. Just the basic primal instinct of calling for help.

_I need…someone…I need a voice…_

Sallie’s shaky hand reached for the Nokia, grabbing it so weakly her fingers could barely hold it, her knuckles stained. Her attempt was to throw it at Paul’s lap to wake him up, but she watched as she dragged the Nokia off the table, and it slipped through her feeble fingers, collapsing onto the floor, hitting the floor with a heavy _thud!_

Thankfully, the fall of the indestructible phone was enough to wake Paul up, and his eyes flew up, snorting and sitting up straight to see Sallie looking back at him. And the moment their eyes made contact, Sallie’s eyes filled with tears, and she feebly cried, choking a small word.

“Pau…l…”

“Sssshh…” Paul instantly hushed, getting off his chair and crouched beside Sallie, a hand on her head as the little woman wept. “Ssh, it’s okay…it’s okay, Sal.”

Paul watched in despair as Sallie cried feebly, just relieved to hear another voice.

“Paul…”

While she wasn’t as close to Paul as she was with Corey and Shawn, she was just simply relieved to see someone she knew, and not a stranger in a white lab-coat. Paul’s hand grabbed onto hers, holding them together, his palm surprisingly soft yet his fingers were coarse.

“Relax, relax…” He whispered calmly, taking a deep sigh. “So glad you’re back with us…”

Sallie smiled shakily, the cut on her bottom lip splitting slightly. Her tongue shook inside her mouth.

“Where…”

Even her one-word sentences were enough for Paul to understand her.

“You’re in hospital. _Broadlawns Medical centre_.” Stroking her battered skull, he pulled the strands of hair out of her eyes, and looked deeply into her wounded eyes, heartache in his features. “You got assaulted at work.” He reported softly, as if she needed to know. Paul assumed Sallie was very uncertain where and what happened, disorientated with the situation.

Sallie emitted a tiny noise of understanding, closing her eyes. Paul straightened, grabbing Sallie carefully and pulled her onto her back, sitting her up slightly and made sure she was comfortable. She showed no signs of discomfort. He picked his phone from the floor and tucked it into his pocket, his eyes barely leaving her. “You’re a fucking survivor, Sal.” Paul spoke. The pleading gaze from the wounded woman told him that all she needed was to hear a friendly voice, so he kept talking to her, knowing that she didn’t needed to answer. “Shawn said you were in a right fucking state when he got to you. We don’t know what happened, but you tell us when you’re ready, okay?”

Another little noise of affirmation. Paul studied Sallie, seeing her eyes looking around, familiarising herself.

“Corey?” She croaked.

Paul hesitated, looking away for a time.

“Don’t worry about him…” He simply said.

“Corey…” Now she was asking, and Paul sighed deeply.

“He’s with Shawn…he’s okay…”

_Considering the situation you’re in now, he should be fucking grateful to still be alive…_

“You want a drink?” Paul offered, promptly changing the subject. And spying the little glimmer in her distraught eyes, Paul chuckled softly. “I’ll be back. You stay there.”

Sallie expelled air past her lips, blowing a raspberry-noise to say how silly that comment was, and Paul only just realised. “Oh yeah, sorry.” He smiled faintly and left the room.

Sallie remained still in the bed, all emotion crumbling inside of her, only the beeps of the machine beside her bed gave her an indication that she was still alive.

Vaguely, she picked up pieces of the memory she could hold for the past few hours, noticing blank spaces of nothingness in her thoughts. But she remembered _something_.

While she was attacked, Corey had passed out.

That _hurt_ her. Hurt her far more than she realised. Why would he be so fucking foolish in drinking so much, so heavily, and at work. And then the one fucking time he passes out on her…she needed him the most…

Tears stung her eyes, breaking and bleeding her sight, and she barely made a noise of anguish, sounding like a child dying under the hot beam of the lights. Her rattling fingers clutched onto the bedsheets, each movement so painful, but she was trying to implicate more agony through her, just to block out the fury and heartache that writhed in her throbbing skull.

“Why…” She scarcely said, mouthing the word as tears ran down her eyes, rolling at the corners and temples, dripping past her ears and into her hair. Pulling the sheets up, she tried to hide her face from the world, unable to bear the thought of seeing anyone now. She was afraid of being alone, but so terrified of being judged for failing to defend herself. She thought back upon the assault, knowing that she had a better plan in evading such attacks, but she wasn’t with it, the world and timing against her, and she was so focused on Corey that she wanted to protect him from whatever was coming for him…

…and instead took the beating herself.

The bedsheets pulled over her face, hid herself from the world, and she curled into an aching ball, crying pathetically.

* * *

Paul never left her side. Even while she was hiding, he made it be known that he was there. The sight was heart-wrenching. The Pig-Bassist didn’t know Sallie as well as Shawn, but he had spoken to both Corey and Shawn. She seemed to be just like them, suffering in this cursed city, needing an escape from her reality and was struggling. A beautiful kinship between broken souls, he immediately felt connected with her when Shawn spoke about her, and rather highly too. Sallie had given out a vibe that Jodie could never do. There was a sense of caring, a line of hope, and due to her suffering, she understood the value of the smaller things in life, appreciating them.

Jodie, on the other hand, had no real trouble. No tragedy to mould her into a stronger person. Instead, she was simply a princess that got what she wanted, and then tried to pull the depression card when she couldn’t have her way. She used that excuse a lot with Corey when he caught her cheating.

Paul felt closer to Sallie in the last three days than he had with Jodie in the last three months. He didn’t know it at the time, but a part of him was certain that this woman was going to stick with them for a long time.

Beneath the sheets, Sallie heard Paul talking, and while most of the time Sallie didn’t respond, he knew she was listening.

She barely managed to peek her eyes through the blanket when Paul sat down and began to play on his bass, giving Sallie a tutorial on how to play it, and what kind of interesting tunes you could make with it. Paul occasionally glanced at Sallie, seeing her intensely watching him, and it was enough to tell Paul that she was okay for now.

“Paul…?”

Paul looked up.

“Hmm?”

“Why…why pig mask?”

Paul blinked at the question, but then he smiled, a small chuckle escaping him as he shrugged.

“Not too sure. I just kinda liked it. The guys say that is suits me.”

Sallie slightly tilted her head in confusion, and Paul added: “I have a rather indulgent personality, if I do say so myself. I mean,” He pushed his finger on his nose and forced it back, imitating a pig and snorted. “Uncanny resemblance, huh?”

And he heard a small giggle from the woman, bringing a bit of light into Paul. The first sign of life returning to her.

There was a knocking at the door and Paul looked up, seeing a nurse entering the room, and she gave them both a large smile.

“Ah, I’m glad you’re awake, Miss. Knight.” She beamed, facing Paul. “Thank you for watching over her, I’m sure it helped Miss. Knight.”

Sallie nodded, whining in agreement. Her head was spinning, and she knew it was best to keep her head down. Paul was talking on her behalf.

“Yeah, she’s strong. The boys and I know this.” Paul said proudly, and Sallie closed her eyes in relief, simply listening, not caring about faces.

“That’s good.” The nurse said behind Sallie, a rustling of papers. “We’re currently contacting her parents,”

Her parents…

_My fucking mum isn’t here…_

Sallie whined sorrowfully, hiding her face in the blankets and retreating.

“Uh, I think it’s just her father and stepmom.” Paul jumped to her defence, and Sallie heard the vague muffle of an apology from her blanket fortress.

“I need you to leave when they come. Just to give Miss. Knight some time with her family.”

Sallie whimpered louder again, snivelling. The nurse seemed confused.

“No…no Sam…no Sam…” Came the soft begging.

“No Sam?” The nurse asked sympathetically.

“I think she meant her stepmom.” Paul interjected. “They don’t get along well.”

_Thank you, Paul…thank you…_

“That’s a shame.” The nurse said delicately, her tone kind. “I’ll just send in Mr. Knight when he gets here,”

“Thank you.”

Sallie waited until the nurse left the room, the door closing softly. And Sallie peered through the blanket, her swollen black eyes squinting at him.

“Thank you…thank you…” She sobbed in a tiny voice. Paul hushed her again, placing a hand on her head and stroked her.

“It’s okay…it’s okay…” He whispered, caressing her forehead. It was burning to the touch. “Shawn told me all about it.”

Her small hand grabbed Paul’s fingers, holding onto it and cried softly, trying to drain the agony out of her, but could only find more pain.

They waited.

And waited.

* * *

Darkness seeped through the hospital room. Strangely, Sallie had a bit more life in her now.

She was sitting up in her bed, staring blankly at the wall.

She was still waiting for the arrival of her father, and she half expected to see that bitch stepmother too. Unfortunately, Paul had to leave as visiting hours were over, but his bass guitar remained propped beside her bed. It was his promise that he would return and had entrusted her with his bass. An inkling of temptation tried to get her to play with it, just to feel what a bass was like in her arms…but she had no strength, nor the emotional desire. Instead, she just stared at the wall.

Her thoughts were finally returning to her, her ability in overthinking such complex situations now came back, and she felt dull voices and comments in her skull.

A knock on the door alerted Sallie out of her daze, and another nurse came in, smiling gently at her.

“How are you feeling, Miss. Knight?”

“Still shit.” Sallie said bluntly, but there was no sharpness in her tone. Just the blunt statement. “But at least I know where I am.”

“That’s good.” The nurse sighed, looking at her clipboard and writing notes. There was a lingering silence as she wrote the notes.

“Have you…heard from my dad?”

The nurse looked up, and the question was something she was praying the patient would not ask. But she knew it needed to be answered.

“We’ve…made contact with him and his wife.” She said slowly, trying to word this as painlessly as possible. “Unfortunately, he can’t make it.”

Sallie snorted.

“Fucking…typical…” She grunted, looking away and tried to hold back pained tears. He had proven her wrong yet again. “Why?”

“He’s…currently away.”

When Sallie looked at the nurse, her gaze was baffled.

“Away?”

The nurse hesitated, rubbing a golden lock away from her neck. From the confusion of Sallie and from what Mr. Knight said on the phone, the nurse knew she was going to break this little woman more.

“Mr. Knight and his wife are away. They’ve gone to Las Vegas for two weeks…”

Sallie stared, and the nurse watched as her comment finally came through to her.

“Las…Vegas?”

“Yes. He said that it was a holiday he had booked with Mrs. Knight-”

“Call her Sam.” Sallie snapped suddenly, an eruption of emotion taking hold of her, and it strained her voice. “She is _not_ Mrs. Knight. That’s my mother’s fucking name.”

The poor nurse flinched, but she was at least understanding.

“I’m sorry.” She cleared her throat, starting again. Erratic reactions from patients were normal. “Mr Knight and _Sam_ are away for two weeks. Your father said he had booked this holiday a while ago.”

“He…never told me…”

The nurse looked horrified, seeing the lost in Sallie’s dull eyes, like staring into a dying person.

“I’m so sorry…We tried to convince him to come down but-”

“It’s okay…it doesn’t matter…” Sallie sighed, her eyes dropping to the floor for a time. “Can I…ask two favours…?”

The nurse approached Sallie’s side.

“Of course, dear.”

“Can I…see my friends tomorrow please?” Sallie was holding back tears; the nurse could hear it.

“You mean the men that brought you here?” Sallie nodded, and the nurse wrote a note. “Of course, my dear.” Once she finished scribbling, she looked back at Sallie, hugging the clipboard. “And the other favour?”

Sallie took a moment to speak.

“I want to be left alone…please…”

The nurse’s blond brows arched sorrowfully, but she respected the decision.

“Of course, dear. I’ll put a _Do Not Disturb_ sign on your door for the rest of the evening.” And with a small nod, she left the room, bidding Sallie a goodnight.

Sallie didn’t echo it.

And when Sallie was alone again, she curled under the blanket in a small ball and sobbed her little heart out, crying so much until she finally fell into another deep sleep.

_I just want to sleep forever…_


	24. Little Sister

Nurses and doctors have flocked into the room on routine inspections the next day, marking down notes of Sallie’s health and progression. And while she still refused to talk to anyone but her newfound friends, she hid from the world and denied coming out.

Even the police came in and asked Sallie to speak to her about the incident, but when the distressed little Brit howled crying under the sheets, they decided that now was not the time to interrogate her about the incident. The doctor had forced the police to leave when they became a bit persistent. It was obvious she knew what had happened, and was willing to talk, but she was already fragile and destroyed from the last 24 hours, and she couldn’t bear seeing anyone…

It wasn’t until in the afternoon the nurses and doctors had finally given into Sallie’s plead and left her alone.

There was a knocking at the door a few hours after.

Sallie didn’t answer. Probably another interrogation with strangers, or a fucking lab-rat in a coat…

When she heard the footsteps coming in, she tried to determine who it was. They weren’t sophisticated glossy shoes of the police force, nor was it the muffled pats of scrubs. The slight screeching of worn sneaker rubber against polished floor.

The creaking of a chair being sat on…

And then, a hand touched the top of the blanket, soft and caring.

_Paul?_

She decided to not come out, frightened in case it was a trap in getting her out. Everything was out to get her, everyone wanted to hurt her, and yet why won’t they fucking let her _die?!_

“Hey…”

Sallie stirred at that voice, a hand slowly coming out of the blanket fort, and pulled down, revealing the distraught darkened face of Sallie as she peered through, seeing her visitor.

Sitting in the seat was Corey, dressed in a black tank-top and a pair of baggy jeans, his dreadlocks seemed brighter in the light. But his eyes were sunken. He looked a lot worse than the last time she saw him. His right eye was darker than the other eye, and Sallie recognised it as a black eye, almost mirroring her own black eyes.

Corey tried to smile, but his lips shook as he saw the state she was in, seeing the pale skin tinged with red, her eyes swollen and ruined, her eyes bloodshot. His smile was crooked and trembled, breaking.

“Corey…” Sallie whispered, at first incredibly surprised-

**_HE FUCKING DID THIS TO ME!_ **

That terrible thought struck through her with a force that scared her, and Corey watched as Sallie’s eyes shimmered with tears and she hid back into the blankets. Corey realised than that she recalled what happened, and how she got there.

Corey heard the little woman sob inside the bedding, broken, her whimpers sounding so fragile. And he didn’t know what to say. He watched the woman break down inside the safety of her fortress, hiding away from the world, and now she was hiding from him.

He stared down, his eyes hauntingly depressed, watching as his best friend cried so helplessly away from him, not even looking at him, and it hurt him to see that the sight of him triggered another storm of emotions out of her. His words lost, his mind falling.

He had failed her.

He wanted to say something, but he knew that none of it would soothe her anymore, none of it could take back what had been done upon her.

“Sal…” Corey barely managed to say, and Sallie didn’t realise. He leaned down, placing a hand on her again, feeling her shivering under the blanket. “It’s okay…it’s okay…” He hushed her, petting the blanket. “I’m here now, you’re safe-!”

Corey choked on his words when the blanket suddenly burst up, and Sallie had shot out of it, sitting on the bed and looking at Corey with absolute hatred, her eyes bloodied and red. Her lips bruised and sliced, cuts splitting as she snarled back at him like a feral, wounded animal.

“ _Safe?!_ This fucking happened because you _weren’t_ there for me!” She managed to scream, a hasty rile of emotion taking a hold of her, and her swift movement made her dizzy. Corey noticed her rocking slightly, out of balance, and he tried to grab her shoulders.

“Ssh! Sal, calm down-”

“ _Get off me!_ ” Sallie screamed again, slapping his hands off her as tears streaked down her damaged face, the bruises glossy under the lights. “You-! You _fucking-!_ ” Sallie shook hard, and she broke down again, her head hanging low as a sob hitched on her chest, and she began to cry again, another wave of hurting returning to her. “You _fucking_ did this to me!”

Her screams could be heard from the corridors. Corey swallowed hard, his body becoming so cold at her accusations. And the worst thing about it was that she had _every single_ right to say such things.

“I’m sorry-”

“You think _sorry_ is gonna fucking fix this?!” Sallie shrieked over him, pointing at her lacerated face. “Everything fucking hurts and I wanna fucking die!”

Corey grabbed her shoulders again, this time, with a force and held her still.

“You don’t mean it! Stop it!”

“I want to be with Mum! I want to be with my fucking Mum! No one fucking wants me! No one fucking cares! I wanna die! I’d rather die! I wanna die!”

Corey clutched onto Sallie hard, his arms practically choking her as he squeezed around her tiny body and pressed his face against hers hard, forehead to forehead.

“Stop fucking _saying_ that!” Corey snarled, his eyes intensely locking onto hers, staring at the emotional pools of cobalt in red.

“Why did you fucking do that?!” Sallie screamed back, panting hysterically, her little chest shifting hard against her raggedy pants. “Why did you fucking drink and pass out on me?!”

“I got in an argument with Jodie, and I couldn’t handle it-!”

Sallie unleashed an unearthly scream, the very name of Corey’s lover triggering the last primitive compulsion, and she snatched herself away from Corey, breaking free from his grip and got off the bed on the other side. The IV machine shifted quickly at the aggressive tug, and the heart monitor beats were quickening, mirroring her heartbeat.

“ _Fucking-!_ ” Sallie snatched at the IV tubes and ripped them out of her veins, screaming in agony in the progress. Corey watched as the little Brit went into hysterias, sabotaging herself and he was immediately beside her, his arms around her again, holding her against his chest, hushing her insistently. “ _I wanna die! I wanna die! No one cares about me! NO ONE CARES ABOUT ME!”_

 _“STOP IT!”_ Corey yelled frantically, grabbing her skull and pushing it against his chest, hearing her muffled screams rumbling harshly against his ribs. The woman scrambled against him, feeling suffocated as the dreadlocked man crushed her against his body, attempting to calm her down like a distressed bird, but it wasn’t helping. She kicked at his legs and punched at his arms, her hands finally reaching for his face and grabbed _hard_. Corey roared at the pinching of nails, and he scowled down as Sallie snatched her face away from his chest, glaring up at him, her hands holding his face, her nails digging into his flesh. Her face was red now, a distressing sight of a destroyed human that wanted to end it all.

Her expression slowly softened the longer she stared at Corey, and Corey began to calm down, hoping that she had now left her mania and was slowing down just by the sight of him. But her furious expression dropped, and when her eyes rolled back, she slumped down his body and onto the floor, losing consciousness again.

Corey screamed for help…

* * *

The sudden burst of action and emotion Sallie experienced wasn’t good. It dampened her recovery, the meltdown causing her to fall unconscious again. When Shawn, Paul and Mick were called in, they walked to see the room an utter disaster, and Corey hunched in the chair, his face in his hands as he wept.

Corey had visited Sallie without Shawn’s permission, so the Clown was not impressed by his stunt. He had a feeling this would happen, and while none of them knew what happened, they had to be careful. She was on the brink of insanity, she was close in doing _anything_ , so impulsive, so destructive…

For both of their friends’ safety, Mick and Shawn stayed with Sallie as Paul took Corey back home. Now wasn’t the best time for them to see one another. Besides, Shawn and Mick had every intention in finding out what had happened.

It took Sallie about four hours to come through, and the moment she opened her eyes she began crying again, shaking immensely.

“Corey?! _Corey!_ ”

Mick was in the room, and immediately threw his book on the floor when the woman woke up screaming.

“Hey! Hey!” Mick hushed, looming over Sallie and cupping her small face with his large hands. “I’m here.”

Seeing Mick, Sallie stopped, panting hysterically.

“Corey? Where’s Corey?! I didn’t hurt him, did I?!” She whined, interrupted by Mick trying to calm her down, pulling her against his chest and held her. Her small hands snatched at his shirt and pulled at him, holding him too.

“It’s okay, you didn’t hurt him…he’s with Paul…”

“I’m a monster! I fucking-!”

“Shut it.” Mick said firmly, like a father scolding at his child, and holding her tearful face, he made her look at him. His stunning blue eyes looked deeply into her. “You’re not a monster. Corey’s okay.” A slight lie, but he needed to keep her calm. “You need to calm down. Calm down for me, okay?”

Sallie sniffled, nodding as she shut her eyes, and it hurt to keep them close.

“Everything hurts…Mick…”

“I know.” He held her shoulders and rubbed them tenderly. “Lie down, rest.”

She obeyed him, leaning back into her bed, and she looked at Mick with a strange troubled look in her eye. It almost frightened the behemoth, staring back at a replica of Corey. The pair were very interesting in how uncannily similar they were, their expressions and sorrow so deeply etched into their features, how they mirrored one another so perfectly like twins. Mick believed it was because the pair of them were on the same wavelength in terms of self-hatred and lack of tolerance for anything.

Mick pulled the sheets up to her chin, wiping her tears with his fingers and smiled sadly. She sniffed hard as the door opened, and Shawn came in holding three bags of McDonald’s. He stopped when he saw the scene.

“Thank fuck…” He sighed in relief, placing the food down and approached the other side of the bed. “How are you feeling?”

Sallie’s eyes dropped, searching the word.

“Ruined…” Her lips quivered.

Shawn scooped her small hand and cupped both of his hands around it, kneeling.

“You’re stronger than this, Sal. I know it hurts, but you have your brothers here.”

Sallie blinked, looking at Shawn with a slight frown.

“Brothers? You barely know me…”

“I don’t fucking care.” Shawn announced, rather confidently. “I have never felt such a connection with another person like you. The boys and I feel the same way, and by fucking damn, Corey feels the same way too.”

Sallie shook her head.

“I…don’t understand…”

“What Shawn is trying to say is that you’re such a good friend to us.” Mick said softly, kneeling down too. “You took care of a disaster like Corey, and it shows. You took care of our friend, and any friend of Corey’s is a friend of ours.”

“Nah,” Shawn piped up. “She’s our _little sister_.”

“But I…” Sallie stalled, blinking back tears. “Little sister?” Shawn nodded as she faced the Clown, turned to Mick, and back at Shawn. “Like…a family?”

“Of course!” Shawn announced. “I can’t wait for you to meet Joey. He’s been out of town for a while, but he’s our drummer.” He paused. “Come to think of it, you two could practically be twins. You both have long hair…and both dwarfs.”

“Hey…” Sallie gave Shawn a half-smirk, finding the insult a little amusing.

“You’ll love him, Sal.” Mick agreed, rubbing her forearm. “We’ve got a gig at the Safari Club in the next few days.”

Sallie’s eyes widened in angst.

“W-Wait…what if I can’t make it?” She sat up suddenly, and Shawn pushed her down again, forcing her to rest. “What if I’m still here? I wanna be there for your next gig!”

“You resting is what is important. You can always join the next gig if you don’t come out of here in time.”

“But…I…” Sallie bit her lip and looked away. “I wanna be there…”

“Then you better rest your fucking ass and get better quickly!” Mick boomed, folding his arms over his burly chest. “Besides, Halloween is coming up, and we’ve been planning a night-out with the gang. Not for a gig, but as friends.”

“You’re coming with us.” Shawn smiled. “It’s called _Farmageddon_ , and it looks pretty fucking cool!” He stopped, calming down slightly. “You…like Halloween, right?”

Sallie smiled feebly.

“I fucking love it…it’s my birthday.”

Shawn and Mick exchanged looks, both grinning.

“Then we have more reason in dragging you out with us!” Mick grinned, turning his attention to the food Shawn delivered, and began to rifle through the paper bag. “Wah, Shawn?” Fucking… _Happy Meals?!_ ”

Shawn chuckled in delight that his prank worked.

“I thought you wanted the toy!” He laughed, seeing Mick slowly glare at him through his black hair. Sallie managed to laugh weakly at the banter between them.

“Bastard…” Mick grilled, pulling out the small red _Happy Meal_ box and slumped in the seat, the small child’s meal looking comically small in his hands as he stuffed the fries in his mouth, munching on them contently.

“My dad and his bitch have gone away…”

Mick stopped inhaling his fries midway, looking up with wide blue eyes, fries sticking out of his lips. Shawn turned to her suddenly.

“No fucking kidding…” He breathed. “As in away on holiday?”

“Las Vegas…”

“For…how long?”

“Two weeks…”

A silence held the air.

“That’s…” Mick hesitated, his eyes dropping. “They’ll miss your birthday…”

“My father and I share the same birthday.” Sallie whispered, a small tragic hum in her words. “It was probably a birthday present for him from _her_ …”

“That’s fucking sick…” Shawn shook his head, leaning back, stunned. “I just…” He shut his eyes, and when they opened, they were full of determination. “Fuck them. We’ll give you the best damn fucking birthday ever!”

Sallie smiled wearily.

“You don’t have to…”

“No, we’re going to!” Mick agreed, grabbing the little burger and stuffing it in his mouth. “You fucking deserve it!”

“Oh yes. Our fucking hero!” Shawn chimed. “You saved Corey!”

The little Brit sniffed, her brows furrowing and her eyes gazed at Shawn.

“Hmm? Saved…Corey?”

“Well duh!” Shawn grinned. “ _Twice_ , actually.”

“I don’t…”

Shawn reached for her hands again, holding them as he looked at Sallie directly.

“The first time was when Corey first met you.” He said. “Corey called me that day saying that he was so close in losing himself, but you came, and he said he couldn’t quite understand what happened. He admitted he _enjoyed_ making you miserable, and he wanted to come into work the next day just to annoy you…” Sallie’s features melted as Shawn spoke, his explanation lifting something inside of her, and she trembled slightly. “The second time he was going to commit suicide. _Stairways_ …” His eyes dropped. “When he saw Jodie with that other guy, he was going to leave _Stairways_ to kill himself back at home, but of course, _you_ followed him and stopped him. He forced himself to come back inside _Stairways_ because he knew you wouldn’t leave him, and he wanted to be left alone…you were like a fucking fangirl to that bastard, but…it showed that you cared, and he didn’t do anything in the end.” When Shawn looked back at Sallie, her eyes were full, mute-horror, taken back by what he said.

“I…saved…him?”

“Yes, Sallie. You did.” Shawn insisted.

“Twice.” Mick said as he held two fingers up, his word muffled with stuffed food in his mouth.

Sallie’s shoulders drew up, tightening as she looked up to the ceiling, her lower lip quivering as tears rolled down her face again. But they weren’t tears of depression. Shawn felt the relief from them. A shuddering sigh hissed past her clenched teeth, and shutting her eyes, Sallie’s head bowed down.

“I wanna…wanna see him…” She snivelled.

Shawn stood up and turned to Mick.

“Oi, douchebag, called dickhead.”

Mick glared at him, sucking on his fingers and eating the remains of his food.

“Fuck you. I was going to.” He bantered back, pulling out his flip phone and began to dial Paul’s number.

“While Mick is calling,” Shawn looked down at Sallie, his expression coaxing her to be completely honest. “No one knows what happened to you…” Crouching down again, he dropped his voice to a whisper. “What happened?”

Sallie looked at the Clown, contemplating. With a choked sniffle, she whispered back:

“I’m scared…of saying it…they said they’ll kill me…if I…” She had to stop, her words stopping as her throat tightened, and Shawn hushed her.

“ _Tell me_ , Sal. Please, I beg of you…”

Sallie opened her mouth, coughing slightly and swallowed saliva and snot. She leaned towards Shawn and whispered something in his ear. Mick had finished the call, summoning Paul and Corey to come back, and as he turned to his friends, he watched Shawn’s expression darken, and it got far more deeper, a sullen fury in his hard eyes as Sallie explained to him what happened. When the little Brit pulled back, Shawn sighed deeply. “Right…” He turned back to Sallie, his expression quickly softening so she didn’t see his intentions. “Thank you, Sal.” He ran a hand through her hair and ruffled it softly. “You’re very brave, you know that?”

A weary smile was his reply.

Mick surveyed Shawn as the Clown walked towards him to get Sallie’s food, and the _Slipknot_ members exchanged a darkened stare that only they understood.

* * *

Paul and Corey returned to the hospital promptly, and Shawn had quickly discarded the evidence of their _Happy Meal_ s in case Paul and Corey complained. Corey was reluctant in returning at first, but when he entered the room with Paul behind him, making sure the dreadlocked man didn’t back down, he was greeted with a small smile from Sallie. She had a little bit of life back in her eyes.

“Corey…” She whined softly, opening her arms, and their friends watched with elation as Corey hurried towards her and embraced her back, holding onto the small woman in his arms. His hand holding the back of her head, his breath shivering as he shut his eyes and held her face against his shoulder.

Shawn stood up, smiling contently at the scene, glad that this episode was over. But there was work to be done. He turned to Mick, who stood up and faced Paul. Paul noticed the dark glimmers in their eyes, and the three of them walked out, leaving Sallie and Corey alone.

The rest of the night was nothing but soft whispers and gentle reassurance. Corey weaved his fingers through Sallie’s hair as she did the same, holding his dreadlock and smiled against them. Nothing was needed to be said. Corey was just grateful that Sallie wanted him back and she seemed a lot better this time, even as he spammed her with apologies after apologies, she hushed him and clutched onto him.

And soon, when Sallie admitted to Corey how drained she was, Corey settled her back down in the bed, tucking her in and gently placed her head in the pillow. He stroked her forehead, sharing a small smile with her.

“Corey?”

“Hm?”

“Don’t…leave me please…”

“I can’t stay here,” He said sadly. “Visiting time is over.”

“I don’t…don’t fucking care…” Sallie sniffed, reaching for his hand and holding it. “Stay…please…”

“I…” Sallie began to pull, with a bit of strength that surprised him, and he soon noticed what she was trying to do. He let her pull him down onto the bed, the little woman shuffling to the edge of the bed and Corey followed her orders, sitting on the bed beside her.

“Lie…down with me, please…”

Corey opened his mouth but decided against it. He conformed, carefully rolling onto the bed and laid there, his arm opened invitingly. Sallie inched towards his arms, tucking herself in them and rested her head against his chest. The first comfort of human connection for both of them, and Corey felt the little woman cling onto him, his arms holding her against him. Their legs entwined comfortably, resting and interlocking with one another. Tucking Sallie’s head under his chin, he stroked her hair.

“This…this is nice…” Corey whispered delicately, closing his eyes. Sallie had already fallen asleep by then, and soon Corey followed, the best friends nestled into each other’s arms under the dim light of the moon.


	25. Unrequited

Like a pair of schoolkids, Sallie and Corey were giggling, trying to evade the nightly inspections of doctors and nurses. When the check-up at 3am was due, Sallie startled Corey awake and insisted he was going to get into trouble, returning to her consciousness and was now panicking.

So Corey did the dumb thing in trying to cram himself underneath Sallie’s bed, hiding.

The worst thing about it was that he got away with it. He was very good at hiding, so silent to the point that when the nurse came in, she was asking Sallie how she was feeling and why she was still awake, Sallie had to focus on herself and realised that Corey was out of sight, out of mind. It was impressive, he wasn’t clumsy. Sallie couldn’t even hear him breathe, like a trained serial killer.

When the nurse left, Sallie had to wait for a moment before edging to the side of her bed, hanging over it and looked beneath it, seeing an upside-down Corey smiling back at her. She smiled emotionally at the sight of his smile and reached under to grab his hand. He reached back and held her hand, stroking it with his thumb.

“I’m here to stay.” He whispered, and Sallie had never felt such relieving words.

“Good…” She purred back.

She lost her grip on the bed and fell onto the floor, faceplanting the floor and whimpered in ache. Corey stifled a laugh before scrambling out from beneath and helping her.

Sallie remained in hospital for a few days after that.

Corey was caught the next day, and despite getting a scolding from the head doctor and nurses, he reassured Sallie that it was worth it, and he would do it all over again.

The nurses were concerned for the young patient, however, considering her father and stepmom were out of the state, and didn’t seem particularly bothered about her condition, so any friends that came to visit her were exceptions. And Corey visited Sallie as much as he could after that day. He would come down every day with a new story to tell her after work.

The police came in again asking questions about the incident, and this time, Sallie wanted to talk, holding Corey’s hand and begged for him to stay. He _needed_ to know this, and so the dreadlocked man stayed, listening to Sallie reciting the situation to the police, rather graphically, with Corey occasionally interjecting and admitting his error. When the mention of Jodie’s brother came into view, Corey turned to Sallie, judging to see if she was lying just to make Jodie look awful in front of him, but seeing the held back tears and the slight breaking in her face told him that she was telling the whole, raw truth, and it struck him to see how crippling it was for her to have even endured such an assault, just for being a good, protective friend.

The police got the details, and even more when they pulled Corey outside the room, who eventually gave in and told them more details that Sallie was unaware of.

Corey told them his relationship with Jodie, and her brother’s whereabout, including his address…

When the police left, Corey returned to Sallie and they shared a compassionate smile.

“Is everything okay?” Sallie meekly asked, pulling the cover up to her shoulders, looking anxious. “You didn’t get into trouble, did you?”

“Nah,” Corey smirked. “You’re safe now.” Corey held Sallie in an embrace, stroking her hair, promising her that this was the end of her torture.

He knew what to do.

* * *

It was almost a week since Sallie was admitted to hospital, and Sallie could feel strength returning to her now. Her back ached and her legs felt weak, but the headache was _finally_ gone. She could think and see clearly, the blood in her eyes gone, the swelling of her bruises settling, and her skin was finally becoming clear from all marks of abuse.

Sallie was off the machine and was given permission to walk around the hospital to the canteen, to encourage strength back in her body. The moment she was given permission, she was immediately attached to the coffee machine. The coffee was burnt and sticky, but it was caffeine nonetheless, and her body craved for it now that she was regaining herself.

Today wasn’t any different.

Sallie felt a little awkward that now the nurses were calling her by her first name, having grown a sense of a friendship with the staff. She had been here for too long now, and while they were all so kind to her, she needed to get out of here. She needed to return…

…to nothing…

Come to think of it, Sallie was enjoying the attention she got here, just the simple smiles and welcoming talks she had with passing nurses and doctors, and even the janitors took time in asking how she was. Rumours said she was one of the youngest patients to have been admitted with such severe wounds, and yet she was standing here, breathing, still walking…

“Someone up there must be looking out for you,” One of the nurses had said to Sallie, and it took all of Sallie’s power to not cry when she thought about her mother.

Was that the very reason why she simply could not die? Whenever she got close, something stopped her. Her own intentions blocked by a force she could never describe, and when she met Corey, life seemed a little more…better.

_Did mum do this somehow? Did she purposely made us meet?_

Sallie wasn’t one to believe in God or the Devil or angels and demons, but she believed in the souls of the departed. Spirits. _Ghosts_. They say that when you feel cold suddenly, a ghostly spirit was around you, and Sallie made a light-hearted reminder that it was possibly the spirit of her mother simply hugging her whenever she got so cold unexpectedly, and Sallie wasn’t one to feel the cold.

A small smile pulled at her lips as she began to refill her next cup of coffee. Perhaps she should sit in the communal garden, get some sunlight.

During her time being hospitalised, Sallie had a lot of time to think. When Corey wasn’t around, she was alone with her thoughts, and sometimes they scared her. They used to implement fear into her mind when she paid attention to the darkness that seeped through her body like ink in water, but this time, the thoughts she had were not scary. Just…unnerving.

 _You would have loved him, Mum…_ Sallie thought as she cupped her paper-cup and began to put brown sugar in it. _He makes me feel alive again…they all do…But Corey makes me feel real. He makes me feel like my existence has a purpose…I don’t know why…_

For a moment, Sallie stirred her coffee, her mind trailing to other branches of contemplations.

How would her Mother react to a man like Corey? Of course, when Corey was a dick and treated Sallie badly, her Mother would probably throttle him, storming into the store and make Corey feel _very, very small…_

But then she remembered what her Mother told her when she was being bullied back in school.

_‘Oh, he’s probably bullying you because he fancies you and doesn’t know how to express it!’_

A little snort of amusement left Sallie’s lips. It could very well apply to Corey’s treatment to Sallie, but Corey didn’t liked Sallie that way. It was one-sided, unrequited, _unwanted_ …

Sallie’s smile dropped. Corey was such an enigma, but one that the little Brit simply could not get enough of, endlessly making her curious in what he was going to say, what he was going to do, and a part of her was a little on edge…but that edge kept her going, it made life _interesting_ …

“I think I finally found him…” Sallie whispered to herself, staring at the dark coffee. “My _real_ best friend. My partner in crime…” A swing of pain made her eye muscles tighten. “My Faith…” She managed to choke, promptly drinking the coffee. Her little thoughts spiralled out of control, but she managed to get a grasp of them, and held them in place. It made her appreciate Corey as a person, as a supervisor and as her best friend, one that shared the same amount of tragedies in his life as she has with hers. Being homeless, the struggles of his own childhood, the loss of his grandmother, who was practically a second mother to him… He shared the equal amount of disaster, loss, hatred. Never had she ever met a person that was just like her…

_I can’t lose him…I can’t…he makes me realise that I am not alone…_

Sallie was beginning to walk to the garden in the centre of the hospital, looking forward in seeing some hot sunlight that was constantly taunting at her through the window.

“Sallie!”

Instinctively, Sallie answered, turning back to the source of the voice and she saw two figures. One she instantly recognised as the tank, Mick, his arms hunched back in his typical intimidating pose as if he was carrying two invisible TVs, his wide shoulders spanning his arms out like a military bioweapon. There was another man beside him too, one that took Sallie by surprise as, while he wasn’t as broad and muscular as Mick, he was _taller_. He had a bit of a goatee growing on his chin, smooth features, soft hazel-green eyes. His hair styled in soft waves, reaching his shoulders, brown hair that was so dark, it could have been easily mistaken for black. Unlike Mick, this man was slender, his structure suiting his height, reminding Sallie of a creepy figure from a horror movie she couldn’t quite recall. But it was not important.

Her attention moved to Mick, feeling more comfortable with the familiar face as the men approached her.

Mick smiled then, relief heavy in his eyes. “It’s so fucking good to see you moving again,” He greeted as Sallie approached him, the very presence of him making her feel more comfortable and she hugged the burly man’s waist, her face pressed against his chest. Mick wrapped his arms around her, hugging her strongly.

“I can’t wait to get out of here.” Sallie said, her voice muffled against his black football shirt. “I miss you guys so much…”

“We miss you too,”

When the hug was broken, Mick turned to the taller man, pointing at him.

“This is Jim.” He introduced. “He’s our other guitarist in the band.”

Sallie beamed a bright smile, holding her hand out and the guitarist shook it.

“Pleased to finally meet you.” Jim smiled, flicking his hair out of his eyes. He held her hand firmly.

“Nice to meet you too.” Sallie greeted. “I’m Sallie,”

“Yeah, Mick was telling me all about you on the way. He wanted to check up on you and I wanted to see this _mysterious girl_.” Jim glanced at Mick, who waved his hand dismissively.

“Told you she wasn’t anything special.”

“Hey!” Sallie piped up and was rewarded with a smirk from both guitarists. Already, she felt a warmth from them, a sensation of being wanted and acknowledged. _Friends_.

“Mick told me that you’re joining us for _Farmageddon,_ ” Jim rubbed his hands together as he spoke, regarding Sallie with a docile kindness. “You’re gonna fucking love it. You like horror and jumpscares?”

“Oh yes!” Sallie grinned, and Mick smirked to see such a happy smile on her at last. “Shawn was telling me that people with chainsaws come after you.”

“In the corn field!” Mick boomed, laughing loudly. “You’re fucked if you get lost in there!”

“I heard the actors there are _so_ good,” Jim chirped, equally excited. “I’ve never been before.”

“Neither have I.” Sallie replied, smiling up at the tall man. “So it’ll be a first time for us both.”

“Oh!” Mick snapped his fingers when a thought occurred to him suddenly. “We can’t stay here for too long, but I was actually here for a _reason_.”

“What? And not to see my pretty face because you missed me?” Sallie grinned, posing her hands beneath her chin, mock-angelically, fluttering her eyelashes.

“Fuck off.” Mick snorted, pulling out a small camcorder. “I…” He hesitated. “…asked if I could keep this for a few days.” He slowly handed it to Sallie, who took the camcorder carefully, as if handling dynamite. She looked at Mick, her brows knitted.

“What is it?”

“A camcorder,” Jim butted in, receiving a hard jab off Mick’s elbow, and he grunted, clutching onto his ribs and laughing weakly at his dad-joke. Mick meant it as banter, but he knew this would be rather serious.

“It’s a gift from all of us.” Mick answered calmly, his eyes looking down, indicating that she should turn it on and play the video. Sallie opened the wing out, revealing a black screen, and Mick pushed a button to switch it on, selecting several files and picked one.

He gauged her reaction.

Sallie watched in growing fascination, hearing a lot of noise from the camcorder. Black. But soon something emerged. The quality wasn’t the best, but she soon noticed a stage, and the first face she saw was the masked-Shawn. The Clown revving the crowd as they screamed for _Slipknot_ to play. The guitarists watched Sallie’s expression melted when she clicked that this was their first live show, the gig that she missed. A pang of hurt rose in her chest, feeling bitter and sad that she missed the show. She should have been there, supporting her friends on their first night. She wished she had the strength to have easily walked out of here, but she knew that not only will the doctors hold her down, but so would Mick and Shawn…

The entire screen was a mixed hue of pinks and red, the lighting in the venue bright and destroyed all other colours, giving everyone a washed-out pinkish-red look.

The Pig-faced Paul was in the corner, his head softly banging to the beat of the music, all members getting revved up. The camera glided to a figure in the distance, wearing a large white helmet. It was either a space helmet or a bike helmet, she wasn’t sure, but the man’s face was completely hidden.

And soon, eventually, she watched as a figure walked onto the stage, and she instantly recognised the blurred features of Corey. He was shirtless, his hair and flesh dyed in the red lights. Squinting, she saw the black crosses over his eyes, trying to fit in with the band’s infamous mask theme. She didn’t know if it was black paint or tape. Clearly the video was playing somewhere in the middle, as the music continued off from where it was last played, and this was evidently in the middle of a show.

Sallie watched, her eyes looking concerned as Corey grabbed onto the microphone stand, his head bowed as he yanked the height of the stand, readjusting it for himself. His eyes seemingly always closed, or so that’s what she thought. And he held onto it, clinging sadly as if it was a departed lover, his hand reaching for his mouth and stroked his own face, disengaged with the world around him, and becoming one with the destructive, thunderous music.

He looked so…

“He looks sad…” Sallie mewed softly, a tint of hurt in her tone. Her thumb brushed over the screen, trying to comfort the little Corey behind the screen. But like with almost everything else, she wasn’t noticed.

Mick tutted sadly; his eyes looked away for a time.

“I knew you’d see that first.” He commented, before adding: “Corey broke up with Jodie that night,”

Sallie looked up, and it looked like her pupils dinted at the very words.

“He…what?”

“Yeah, he broke up with the worst witch,” Jim replied. “He broke up with her in-between the show. So when we had a half-hour break, he did it then.”

“Was she-”

“She wasn’t even invited.” Mick grumbled, his thick black brows arching. “She just walked in as if nothing happened, but we all knew the truth.”

“About-”

“About your assault.” Mick butted in; his tone heavy. “We knew she planned it, and none of us didn’t wanted her to be there. If you couldn’t turn up, she couldn’t either.”

“I think Corey had enough of her then, anyway.” Jim said in a soft voice, his words contrasting against Mick’s thunderous growls. “It was about time; she was toxic as fuck.”

“Thank you…” Sallie sighed, her eyes falling back down to Corey. Despite Jodie being a terrible girlfriend, breaking up with someone whom you wanted to marry in the first place…it must be torturous… to think the one person you wished to spend the rest of your life with was-

“To be fair, Shawn did give Corey a couple of bruises and black-eyes for what had happened.” Jim pointed out, looking at Mick, whose eyes were thunderously dark at the mention of Jodie. “And you nearly killed him.”

_Ahh, that makes sense how Corey got that black eye…_

“I was fucking sick of him being dragged down by a fucking woman.” Mick’s eyes softened very quickly, and he mirrored Sallie’s surprised glance. “No offence.” And he was relieved when Sallie smiled.

“None taken. I knew what you meant.” She paused the video, holding the image of a very sorrowful Corey, and she closed the screen promptly, unable to look at it for that moment. “Thank you for this…at least I can watch it now.” She gave Mick and Jim a smile. “Soon, I’ll be out of here in no time.”

“Exactly, and when you come out, we’ll be ready for you.” Jim nodded. Mick clapped his hands hard and rubbed them together.

“Good! We have a lot of shit and giggles to ensue with you, woman.” Slapping a huge hand on Jim’s shoulders, making the taller guitarist cry out in shock, Mick announced: “Let’s get going then. Need to pick up Joey.”

“I best leave you guys to it.” Sallie beamed, holding the camcorder close to her. “Thanks for this, guys, it means so much to me.”

“No worries.” Mick waved a hand. “Wanted to give you it first. Shawn will get the video onto a CD for you when he can, but you needed to see it sooner before anyone else.”

“Thank you…”

* * *

Sat in her bed alone, Sallie opened the camcorder and had restarted the video from the beginning, settling in the hospital bed as she watched the video. And while she was smiling, feeling so proud for her newfound friends, she couldn’t help but feel mournful for Corey. He seemed so ready yet a bit cold-fronted at the crowd, but that was probably a stage-front. Sallie liked the idea of his ‘mask’, makeshift stitching around his face, and his dreadlocks flipped madly as he headbanged with such a brilliant energy. Sallie fucking adored it! It must have been amazing to watch them all, live, performing.

Corey wore a black suit jacket, to which he removed half-way through and revealed his naked torso, his flesh glistening in the boiling light, nipples so perfect-

Sallie felt her mouth water and she had to pause the video, staring at Corey and admiring his body. How much she longed to feel him, to have him so close to her, and while it was but a broken, defeated dream in dating anyone like him, particularly now where looking for a partner was probably the last thing he had in mind, she felt the edge of her grieving thoughts feel a _little_ softer against her. They weren’t razor-sharp and damaging to her mind. Sure, it upset her, but it was as if she was slowly accepting that she would never achieve such a man. Hell, she wouldn’t fucking achieve any kind of man. She was flawed, bland and full of destructive baggage, and that was dangerous.

No man wants to have a wife that was nothing but shards of a failed upbringing, of a failed life.

No man wants to have a wife that couldn’t even produce children, infertile and crooked. Sam made her feel so useless that day the gynaecologist announced it.

No man would want to _marry her_ …

Unpausing the video, Sallie distracted her dark thoughts away.

When the second part of the show came up, she noticed a significant difference. How anguished his voice felt as he sang, how he held the microphone so close to his mouth as he screamed and sang so aggressively. And it made a lot of sense. Everyone in the crowd had no idea, and maybe some of the bandmates.

And Corey was _brilliant_ at singing, almost inspiring her to sing too. She opened her lips and produced a small noise, before shutting that dream and realising how stupid it was. Corey was a _singer_ , born for the stage, and Sallie was just…flawed.

Sighing so deeply now, she brushed her fingers against the screen, stroking Corey’s face as he sweated on stage, holding back heartache but tried to use it for good.

“It’s okay, Corey. You’ll get through this…you’re fucking stronger than you realise…”


	26. The Knot Family

Sallie surveyed her knuckles. She could still see the wounds remaining on there from her fight with Jodie, but she was amazed at how her body managed to recover from something like that. For once, she woke up today not feeling any pain, the agony subsiding at last. Her knuckles were healing, almost completely new with a hint of red, but there was no sign of abuse or assault.

The little Brit was amazed. She never seemed to notice how amazing the human body was until now, how it self-healed with the assistance of science. But just the sheer fact that even her own body seemed to have forgiven her for her erratic act and was now trying to gift her the healing of itself, she appreciated it so much.

30th October. The day before her birthday, the day before Halloween, and she was finally getting discharged from the hospital. Her doctor and nurses congratulated her for her recovery and bravery throughout the last week, and she felt so proud of herself. She had gathered her belongings, spoke to her doctor and was now waiting for the elevator to get officially discharged from this place. She sent a text to Corey telling him about her being discharging today and was just eager to leave this place and return to an empty house. And for once she was looking forward in coming back home.

The elevator doors opened, and she stepped inside, looking at herself in the mirror. Her face wasn’t so mangled anymore. It had recovered rather well. She ran a hand up her chin and cheek, stroking it and feeling how smooth her face felt. Her eyes were still slightly bloodshot, but after another day she knew they would fully go, and she would have returned to normal. She was freshly washed, her messenger bag slung over her shoulder, her phone in her hand, eagerly waiting for a reply from Corey.

The elevator door opened, and suddenly Sallie jolted to hear a roar coming from the main lobby. She swiftly turned around, and her heart swelled at the sight.

Startingly distinct against the white and beige theme of the hospital, she saw a gathering of six men, all donned in black, all their arms raising up in celebration of the return of Sallie. Sallie covered her mouth in surprise, staggering back into the elevator’s corner and watched as her friends clapped and cheered. Shawn was holding a small banner, black leaking paint stating:

**WELCOME BACK, VIRGIN.**

That was Corey’s doing!

As Sallie inched out of the elevator, feeling all attention drawn onto her, her face flushed madly in red blushes, smiling so widely it hurt her cheeks.

“Guys…” She whimpered emotionally, her adoring eyes looking at Mick, Shawn, Corey, Jim, Paul and another male. He was the same height as Sallie, matching her long hair, except his hair was black with a pair of red streaks that ran down each side of his head. A slender face with deep small eyes. He was clapping his hands, smiling at Sallie as if he had known her for years. She didn’t know who he was, but she knew she would be introduced to him very shortly.

Visitors and nurses were staring at the scene, and while many of them were simply smiling at the warm welcome of a recovering patient, a few people scowled and shook their heads, scrutinizing their attire, the blacks of their clothes, the chains that dangled from their baggy pants, their dirty shoes and freakish variety of appearance, height and presentation.

 _Satanists_ , they thought, despite observing the very touching scene of humans gathering and celebrating the recovery of another. Their appearances were more disturbing than the act itself. Narrow-minded.

But the friends paid no attention. They were all too wrapped up in themselves, a sense of companionship and a band of brothers together, a family gathering from misfits and destructive childhoods.

Sallie trembled on the spot, both hands holding against her face as her tears welled up in happiness, a beautiful display of touching appreciation.

“G-Guys…” She choked on emotion, closing her eyes and buried her face in her palms. “Y-You…”

Corey stepped towards her, his arms open and he swallowed her up in his arms, his friends following suit and suddenly, Sallie was surrounded by them all, the friends gathering the little woman in a reunion she never knew she needed. A group-hug surrounded her, and she was in the safest place in the entire world. The cruel world was gone now, and all around her were friendly faces she had fallen in love with during the last few months. All smiling so proudly of her. They were _proud_ of her. She had never felt this before, a sense of being rewarded for her actions.

_Finally…_

Corey pressed his forehead against Sallie’s, looking at her emotional gaze.

“We are _never_ going to let that shit happen to you again, Sal.” Corey spoke then, his voice strong and determined. No one would have thought he had just broken up with his girlfriend. “You’re here to stay, you’re with us now. Stuck with us. Part of the Knot family.” He smirked as he pronounced Sallie’s membership to the _Slipknot_ family. “No one is ever gonna fucking lay a fucking finger on you ever again. Not when you have the big guns,” Corey pointed at himself. “The bigger guns,” Shawn nudged her, identifying himself as the back-up line of defence. “And the _biggest_ guns.” That was when Mick placed a hand on her head and ruffled her head playfully, and Sallie giggled wetly, her cute lips curved in a sensitive smile.

“Guys…thank you…” Sallie choked again, wiping her crying eyes with the sleeve of Corey’s hoodie, to which she had partly claimed ownership for the last few months now. His smell from it was gone now, but it was still so very sentimental to her. “I-I love you so much…”

“You’ve been a blessing to this band, Sal.” Shawn confirmed, placing a hand on her arm. “You may not believe it, but you’ve been so good for us all. You’ve made us stronger.”

“And we’re not gonna leave your side.” Mick interjected softly, the bass rumbling in his chest from behind Sallie. “Our little sister.”

Sallie’s smile got brighter, and her newly-christened brothers felt a lift of life inside of them all. How they inspired a lost person to come back from a very dark place, like their music had intended. And it felt _good_. They felt like _heroes_.

Sallie reached for Corey’s dreadlock and twiddled with it for a time and was grateful that Corey allowed her to. Normally he’d flick his hair away from her, but this time he let her by peacefully.

“Thank you…thank you guys…” Sallie repeated, unable to find the words to express how she was feeling. Corey mirrored her smile, his eyes endearingly deep onto her, and Sallie felt the urgency to kiss him.

But she didn’t.

Instead, her eyes turned to the little stranger beside her, who was surprisingly hugging Sallie’s waist, and she felt no threat or wariness with him. When she faced him, he smiled back at her. It took Sallie a split moment to remember the drummer back at _Stairways_. “You must be Joey.” Sallie added.

“Yep. Nice to meet you, Sal. The guys have told me all about you.”

“Joey, quit talking to yourself.” Paul sniggered, and both Sallie and Joey glared at him jokingly. Both knew how the others bantered about Joey and Sallie practically being mirror-images of one another, except their genders. Twins.

The friends laughed at this, as Mick and Jim gathered their smaller friends and held them all together in a tight, group hug.

* * *

“Sal, you’re doing fuck all tomorrow!” Shawn announced loudly, one hand on his chest, the other holding a finger in the air. “We have a grand plan tomorrow!”

“Planning shit was the last thing on my mind.”

The friends were sitting at McDonalds now, each happily eating at their chosen fast-food meal. Sallie was sat between Corey and Mick, with Paul and Shawn on the opposite sides. Poor Joey and Jim were resulted in grabbing spare seats from other tables and sat at the end of the top ends of the table, the gathering of friends eating closely. But the sense of closeness was rather comforting for Sallie.

“Good, because whatever you had in mind, cancel it!” Shawn grinned, gathering his soda and drank it furiously through the straw.

“Why, what’s happening?” Sallie smirked, spying the plotting between the Clown and Pig.

“We’re not gonna fucking tell you.” Paul laughed, dipping some fries into his ketchup packet. “It’s a surprise.”

“What about today?”

Shawn and Paul looked at one another, not considering that at all. Sallie smirked in triumph.

“You’re not doing anything,” Corey spoke up, giving Sallie a firm stare. “I know you’re out of hospital, but you’re still healing.”

“I’m fine!” Sallie piped up bravely, playfully nudging Corey. Though he didn’t seem amused with this.

“No, Sal. I’m serious. You’ve still got cuts that need healing, and you’re still limping.”

“I’ll be fine tomorrow, _Dad_ ,” Sallie replied, grabbing Corey’s chin and shook it softly, teasingly. But she was surprised in finding Corey looking so serious. She backed away a little.

“It’s official then,” Shawn smirked, folding his arms on the table. “Corey is Sallie’s new Daddy.”

Sallie shot a hot glare at Shawn to silence the clown, but it did little good. Despite her warning stare, Shawn’s smirk only gotten wider, cheekier, more _challenging_.

“Just say it, Sal,” Mick bantered too, leaning down to the little Brit. “Call Corey your Daddy,”

“Nah mate!” Sallie forced a laugh, fanning a hand at the behemoth, but she was concerned that Shawn had told Mick about her confession. Only Shawn knew, unless it was _painfully_ obvious.

Though Sallie wasn’t expecting Corey to reply. He flashed Sallie a grin, one that looked almost lewd, flirtatiously.

“That’s right, baby-girl, I’m your Daddy.”

Sallie looked back at Corey and caught his expression. Her mouth went dry suddenly at the intense stare he gave her, a vibe of excitement writhing in her chest. His smirk faltered unexpectedly, and he stabbed a finger on the table before her, his voice dropping. “So, you’re fucking staying home tonight, resting! That is an order!”

Sallie laughed again, feeling the eased banter between friends, and found herself easily following it. She turned to Corey with a dramatic sigh, rolling her eyes.

“Gawd, _fine Dad!_ ” She heaved loudly, earning a chuckle from Jim and Joey. “Though I wanna spend time with you guys. I want to go out and have fun, and fuck around in stores or something…” All sorts of ideas came to her, things she had never imagined herself doing. “It’s just…so nice to be with friends, y’know.”

Jim smiled, crumbling the wrapper he had around his burger.

“There’s always time for that later.” He commented, wiping his lips dry with the back of his hand. And when Sallie slammed her hand onto the table, it startled all the boys.

“Wait!” She cried out, elation and anticipation thick in her voice. Corey blinked, never seeing the woman look so animated, and it was genuinely adorable. “I’ve got an empty house…” A dangerous grin came onto her face, and her friends leaned over, interested in what she had in mind. “I’ve never had a house party before.”

“Oh-ho-ho!” Shawn giggled, shaking his fists in a small excited jig. “That sounds like a fucking plan! Yes!”

“Just obviously don’t smash the place up.” Sallie added promptly, smiling. She knew she didn’t need to say such a thing, but it was just to reassure her that she had warned them at least.

“Duh! We’re not fucking assholes.” Joey rolled his eyes, paused, and then pointed at Corey. “Except Corey.”

Corey smirked smugly, shrugging uncaringly.

“Bring our own boozes too?” Mick asked, tilting his head. “Or does your dad have a liquor cabinet we can raid?”

“Go ask him now.” Shawn piped up, joy and mischief in his eyes as he suddenly looked at Corey dramatically, leaning over, his head cradled in his hands. “Do you, Daddy?”

“Fuck off!” Corey chuckled, pushing the Clown’s face away from him. Sallie’s hands began to feel clammy under the table. They were fidgeting. Shawn’s insistent jokes about calling Corey a lewd name on her behalf was starting to unnerve her. If the Clown wasn’t careful…

“Yeah, bring your own stuff. Bring music. OH! And bring games too! We can have a game night!”

“I’ve got a SNES,” Joey replied, finishing his food too.

“Yeah! Bring that! I’ve got a Sega Mega Drive.”

“Did you get the new Sonic game?” Joey asked suddenly, his eyes widening in enthusiasm and Sallie echoed it.

“Yes! I haven’t tried it yet!”

“Yes!” Joey cheered. “This is gonna be a fucking brilliant night!”

* * *

It certainly was a brilliant night then. After organizing everything, Shawn and Mick picked everyone and gathered them back at Sallie’s house. The house was already pristine, so she didn’t need to worry about making it look presentable.

Heavy metal was played, game consoles were brought over, allowing Sallie and her friends to abuse the big TV in the front room, the one room that was a dedicated Sam-Shrine, the room Sallie avoided like the plague. Her friends lounged on the sofas and sat on the floor as they aggressively played, alcohol was consumed but not to the extent of being completely drunk. Corey was very tipsy, but he promised Sallie he wouldn’t drink another, and he kept that promise. Corey and Sallie had spent most of the night together, with the dreadlocked man practically hanging off Sallie’s shoulders and whispering stupid comments to Sallie, the mention of ‘yeeting Mick out of the window’…whatever that meant. He was like her shadow, watching her, making sure that no one was going to hurt her.

It got to the point where Sallie had to sit Corey in the armchair, and he watched her with such a docile gaze that it made Sallie’s heart melt. He didn’t look depressed or distressed like when he was drunk back in _Stairways_ , he seemed more at harmony, as if he _knew_ he was safe. During that, Paul ordered pizza and food, doing an exceptional job of recalling everyone’s order, and everyone contributed to the food.

Sallie would occasionally come back to Corey and made sure he was okay, offering him food and water, to which he failed to feed himself a pizza slice when he fell asleep. But he was safe, and his friends let him rest. They were all aware of his inner demons, and how his breakup with Jodie was probably hitting him harder than he let on, so they allowed him to just drop the tough act and let him rest. Let him ease finally, now that he was unleashed from those shackles of Jodie.

When Sallie returned to Corey again, wrapping him with her duvet she brought from upstairs, he opened his eyes tiredly and smiled at Sallie.

“You okay?” He mouthed, as if he had forgotten to speak. But Sallie read his lips.

“I’m okay,” Sallie whispered under the soft throb of music. She ran her hand through his dreadlocks, brushing them behind his ears and he smiled stupidly, his eyes drooping. “You’re safe here, my Faith.”

“Why…do you call me that?”

“It’s my nickname to you. You gave me Faith.”

The smirk tugged harder at the end of his lips, and he blinked slowly.

“I like it.” He murmured, leaning his head against her chest and nuzzled, falling asleep. Sallie cradled his head carefully, making him lean into the softness of the chair, and tucked him in.

Sallie had never seen so many pizza boxes, and people, in the house with her, and while it wasn’t crowded, it was so… _homely_. Her friends gathered around and spoke to one another, making her feel like she was truly part of a massive family. Sallie was worried that she was going to through a terrible party, but the guys had made it so wonderful for her, being able to take care of themselves, have a fun time, and it was just nice to be able to relax. To have fun.

To be _happy_ in her own house.

The party officially ended at 3AM, and they were too drunk to drive. Sallie had this planned anyway and had designated sleeping areas for her friends. When Sallie mentioned her father’s bed, she knew none of them wouldn’t want to sleep in it….

Except Mick. He didn’t give a shit. He immediately took the master bed, collapsing onto the bed so heavily Sallie was terrified that the behemoth would have broken the bed. Thankfully, he didn’t.

So, Mick took the master bed. Jim slept on one sofa, and Joey slept in the other, both curled up happily with the spare blankets Sallie could find.

Shawn slept in the bathtub. No one knew why…

And Paul was granted Sallie’s bed.

Sallie was the only one awake for the time being, and she began picking up the empty bottles and pizza boxes, preparing a small tidy down before sleeping herself. But she wasn’t tired. Her body didn’t want to sleep for once. If anything, she felt so full of life she feared sleeping today off, not wanting it to end. This was the best day in her life so far, and she knew with these guys she was going to have plenty more days like this.

She felt at home, felt that she had _finally_ found her place in the universe. An escape from her turmoil, ultimately, she was rewarded for her resilience and bravery. Sallie stood in the centre of the kitchen, her mind running wildly with her thoughts, and for once they made her smile.

Happy thoughts.

It was so strange, she felt so light and relieved just from thinking of that. She was finally at that point where she couldn’t see darkness, but instead some shred of light at last.

Her birthday was tomorrow, and her own father wasn’t going to be here for it…

But she had her friends. She had _Slipknot_.

She finished her last little job before deciding to call it a night.

There was a soft shuffling behind her, and when she turned around, she jolted suddenly when she saw Corey standing behind her, her blanket wrapped around him like an oversized cloak, covering his shoulders, keeping him warm no doubt.

He gave Sallie a sleepy smile, his dreadlocks slightly rocking

“Corey, don’t scare me like that, dickhead.” Sallie grinned, grabbing the duvet and tightening it around him. “Why aren’t you asleep?”

“Go to sleep, Sal.” He commanded gently, his eyes kind.

“I’m going to in a bit, just tidying a few things-”

Corey closed his eyes, shaking his head and hushed her promptly.

“Nah, nah. You sleep now.” He whispered, and opening his arms, he opened up the duvet and pulled Sallie into the blanketed hug, holding her small body against his and he sighed, resting his head on top of her head as he wrapped her up in the duvet with him. “You took care of me plenty of times…now I look after you.”

Corey felt Sallie’s arms snake behind his back, riding up to his upper back and she clung onto him, smelling his warm musk on his collar. He shuddered at that touch.

The best friends held onto each other in the darkened kitchen, slowly rocking each other into a calming sense of reality. Eyes closed, they took this moment to appreciate the silence, to understand one another’s company-

Mick’s snoring could be heard upstairs, rumbling terribly through the floorboards.

Sallie giggled.

“Fucking hell…” She whispered against Corey’s chest, nestling her face into his neck now.

“Let’s sleep.” Corey whispered back, and together they carefully walked back to the front room, taking slow steps so that they wouldn’t have to break from this duvet shield they had both made. When they got to the armchair, Corey ordered Sallie to turn around, so that her back was against him, and with a small squeak she felt Corey pulling them both back and heavily crashing into the plush armchair, the duvet wrapped around them. Corey grabbed Sallie’s legs and pulled them up, cradling her against him and she got comfy, knowing what he was planning to do. She rested her head on his chest and felt Corey’s head tilt onto her skull.

“Goodnight, Faith,” Sallie whispered, and she felt Corey smile. He moved his head, and gently, for a fleeting moment, he kissed Sallie’s forehead.

“Goodnight, Virgin,” Corey purred back, nuzzling his nose into her hair and closed his eyes. “Happy birthday…”


	27. Fuck, its Farmageddon!

The day started with Sallie waking up to her friends singing her _Happy Birthday_ , all coordinated by Shawn, who was chuckling, holding a wooden spoon and was waving it like a conductor. Corey stirred, his lips dragged against Sallie’s forehead, drooling and he held a middle finger at them all, pulling the covers over them both.

“Fuck off, we’re sleeping.” Corey shouted, hiding himself and Sallie. The friends laughed, with Paul and Shawn proceeding to yank the blanket off the sleeping friends and hauled Sallie and Corey off the armchair and onto the floor.

They all eventually woke up, Sallie serving hot drinks while her friends helped themselves with cold, leftover pizzas, and even with her hair unbrushed and messy, Sallie watched as the guys entered the kitchen holding presents.

“Guys, you didn’t have to!” Sallie cried out in glee, covering her mouth with the back of her hand as she laughed so heartily, watching as the presents piled up. “Where the fuck did this come from?”

“We hid them,” Paul grinned with pride, holding his present at Sallie first. “You can open mine! It’s the best!”

“Fuck off, Pig.” Mick sneered jokingly, barging into the smaller man and approaching Sallie, practically throwing his present at her. Their banter made Sallie chuckle harder, trying to juggle all the presents that were thrown at her. The band members sat around the table as they watched Sallie opening her presents, getting a variety of new t-shirts with band titles on them from Shawn, Paul and Mick, the latest _Metallica_ CD from Joey, candles from the clueless Jim(which was brilliant because Sallie _loved_ candles), and Corey’s-

Sallie immediately covered the present and glared at Corey.

“Why did you-?!”

Corey smirked, shrugging.

“Y’know, I thought you’d like it.”

“Where the fuck am I gonna hide it?!”

“Hide what?” Jim grinned, leaning over her small shoulders, and Sallie tugged the present away from his prying eyes.

“No! Don’t look!” Sallie piped up in horror, hugging the wrapped present tightly.

“Why, is it a dick?” Joey giggled impishly, seeing the red blushes on Sallie’s face. But just as he said this, the present slipped down Sallie’s arms, escaping the wrapper and collapsed onto the floor. A dull _thud!_ followed, and everyone looked down to see a box on the floor. A box with the infamous _Lover’s Playground_ logo on it, and on the box-art, slapped on all sides, was an image of a simple ‘realistic’ dildo. “Oh…” Joey’s voice dropped. “It’s a dick…”

Corey smirked lewdly.

“A dildo, Corey?!” Mick boomed, a little horrified, though this was Corey they were talking about. He was naturally a bit perverted, and now that he and Sallie have gotten to that comfortable part of their friendship, Corey could express this side without looking like a creep. But still… “Really?”

Shawn was howling with laughter, Sallie’s failed attempt in hiding the lewd present comical and adorable.

“Thought Sallie would appreciate it.” Corey grinned, watching as Sallie bent down and snatched the box from the floor.

“I never had a sex toy before. I’m _not_ using it!” Sallie cried out.

“Use it as a paperweight.” Jim suggested with a grin pulling at his lips, supressing a laugh. “Or a doorstop.”

Sallie turned to Corey, seeing him holding back a laugh himself, and she waved the box at his face.

“Well, I’m gonna call it _Corey_ , because you’re a dick!”

Shawn laughed harder, banging a fist on the counter as he howled. Jim and Joey leaned back at the comeback.

“ _Daaaamn!_ ” They both chuckled in unison.

Corey sniggered, regardless, watching as Sallie laughed and gently headbutted his chest.

“Thank you.” She murmured sarcastically, but she was smiling, her eyes glistening in amusement at his prank present. Corey placed his hand on her head and ruffled it.

“You’re welcome, Virgin!”

* * *

Shawn and Corey had intensely planned the day for Sallie and their friends. When breakfast was finished, the friends gathered back at _Merle Hay Mall_ , checking through the stores as a group. It had been a while since Sallie came to this place. The last time was when she was with Corey in the food court, and she felt a connection with the man.

Now, the store was donned with orange and black decoration, cute pumpkins and cartoon bats hung everywhere, the artificial orange maple leaves following the arches of every door. Halloween was here, and Sallie was finally feeling giddy over the event. Sam wasn’t one for Halloween, and so no effort for such a ‘useless’ holiday was made. Though it gave her a chance to dress in some sort of slutty outfit, much to Sallie’s dismay. Fortunately, she didn’t have to deal with that this year!

Their intimidating looks and dark clothes made other shoppers wary of their presence, avoiding them. But none of them cared. They shared jokes and laughed together, jumping from store to store, exploring anywhere, _everywhere_. They even went to a women’s clothes store and Corey had posed with some adorable feminine hats. Joey stood beside him with a pair of flowery sunglasses, and already Mick and Shawn acted like camera men, taking pictures of them messing around. Even Sallie joined in, pulling out a tie and hanging it around Corey’s neck, all three pulling twisted, hilarious faces.

That gave Sallie an idea…

She brought her friends to the costume store further down the Mall, and they all spread out throughout the store, invading the Halloween section. Parents with young children avoided the daunting group of friends. And that was okay with them. It gave them free reign of the poor costume store.

Sallie snatched a horse mask and put it over her head, approaching Joey and made a terrible horse noise. The little drummer burst out laughing, finding a unicorn mask and put it over his head.

“I’ve got an idea!” He told Sallie, whispering the plan. Sallie agreed, and they held hands, standing together as they waited for Paul to turn around from the sexy lingerie section for women, and he jumped up when he saw the horse-headed and unicorn-headed morons standing before him like the twins from _The Shining_.

“Come Neigh with us, Paul…” Sallie spoke in a mock-eerie voice. She heard Shawn chuckling beside her further ahead, and he was suddenly in view, snapping a photo of Joey and Sallie.

“Stop horsing around, you two!” Shawn joked, making Joey groan at the bad pun.

“Why the long-face, Joey?” Jim added, and Sallie snorted.

They got kicked out of the store promptly, but they all left laughing at the photos once they stopped and looked at Shawn’s camera.

This was something Sallie had missed. To be able to have fun with friends, to be free and not care about the rules, to not be drowned in self-deprecating people and mood-hoovers. Simple fun, great atmosphere.

Just easy, feel-good vibes…

It was _amazing_. The last time Sallie had ever smiled like this was when her mother was still alive, and even then, that was a very, very long time ago. She felt as though she had forgotten to smile, and now she was doing it without even realising it.

The movie was playing horror movies all day, and Shawn had bought tickets for all of them to watch a horror movie together before the big surprise.

He picked _Halloween_ , a classic.

They bought popcorn and drinks, attending the movie theatre. Sallie sat comfortably between Corey and Joey, sharing a smile at both. When the adverts were playing, Sallie took this moment to face her best friend, who was staring at the adverts with an unnerving numb look on his features.

“Hey…” Sallie whispered, leaning over to Corey. He turned to her.

“Hm?”

“You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah…” Corey looked back at the movie screen, and Sallie bit her lip. She knew he wasn’t.

“I…know.” She eventually mewed, placing a hand on his thigh. “I know what happened on the night at the Safari Club.” Corey blinked and faced her again, seeing the genuine care in her eyes. Corey’s brows darkened, rolling his eyes and snorted lightly.

Sallie could hear Shawn talking to Jim about something, throwing bits of popcorn at Mick, who turned to him and snarled.

“Pfft. She had it coming,” Corey spoke lowly. Shaking his head, he turned back to the adverts.

“Yeah, but…I’m here, okay?” She reassured him, squeezing his thigh. “You can talk to me. Don’t keep it inside, okay?”

The dreadlocked man’s eyes dropped to her hand, and he reached for it, holding onto her small hand. After a moment, he faced her.

“I won’t. I promise.” He gave her hand a gentle squeeze, and feeling her squeezing back, he knew that she was happy with that, and they both faced the screen.

 _Halloween_ was an outstanding film. During one of the calmer moments, Shawn had been cruel and unexpectedly grabbed onto Joey’s leg, shouting _Boo!_ so loudly, the audience around them jumped too, and with Joey and Sallie crying out at the same time, they glared at Shawn and giggled nervously. Even the audience chuckled at this little prank. But that was just the one time. Shawn decided to let them enjoy the film, leaning back and watched it himself.

Sallie had only seen parts of it and was engross in the film from start to finish. Her eyes fastened onto the screen with Corey. He had seen this film many times but was never tired of them. _Halloween_ was one of his favourite films. During the length of the film, he had found himself holding onto Sallie’s hand, and he felt her tense up. He smirked lightly, finding it adorable that she was frightened of the movie…

Or so he thought.

He occasionally glanced at his friends, seeing Mick and Jim staring at awe as the main protagonist, Laurie, was discovering dead body after dead body, screaming and whimpering, crying in the corner of the upstairs hallway, distressed. Shawn and Paul leaned back, unfazed by the scene, while Joey’s eyes were huge, on the edge of his seat. Sallie, however, was pushed back. _Far_ back. She shared the same awe-struck expression as Joey, but she was pressing herself into her seat. Corey found it cute. Jodie had always seemed so uninterested with horror movies, and now that he saw the interest in horror and Halloween with Sallie, he was grateful they had another thing in common.

The music became intense, and the audience around them bristled with alarm as Michael Myers appeared in the darkness slowly, his knife wielded and missed the arm of Laurie, causing her to scream and fall backwards down the stairs.

Corey heard a woman whimper behind him, and his gaze glanced at Sallie from the corner of his eyes. She wasn’t the one whimpering. But she was shifting a lot. His brows furrowed and he turned back, the chase scene beginning when Michael Myers was following Laurie around the house, the music piking up and intense. Michael Myers stood at the top of the stairs, shadowed and haunting.

Sallie’s legs clenched. Corey noticed that. He tried to be subtle, watching the movie and observing Sallie. Unless she herself was getting a little scared of this movie…but something about this felt different. She wasn’t screaming or whimpering, hiding her face from the screen like other women did. But the more he watched her, the more he noticed other little signs that told him _something else_.

She was chewing on the corner of her lip, her eyes huge and her thighs tightened together, eventually crossing over, hard. Her breathing was deep, long, as if trying to calm herself down. This wasn’t the reactions of a person that feared, but…

Laurie locked the kitchen door, pathetically pushing herself against the glass backdoor.

“Pfft, smash the window, you moron.” Mick murmured, cocking his brow at the dumbness of this main character.

Joey’s leg was bouncing as Michael punched through the door, Laurie’s screams howling through the speakers as the serial killer punched through the door, unlocking it and opening it, approaching the distressed prey.

“Fuck…”

Corey had to register what Sallie said. Her hand was now shaking, holding hard at Corey’s.

Maybe she _was_ scared…but Corey wasn’t convinced.

Trying to look casual, he turned in his seat, leaning on one hip and was resting his elbow on the arm of the chair, _listening_ to Sallie as they watched. He saw Sallie swallowing in the dim light, and she was panting hard, her palm hot and sweating. He kept glancing at her, realising that Sallie was far too engage in the movie to even notice him looking at her. Sallie was sweating, her eyes watching the movie with no such horror or anticipation in her.

Oh no, it was _something else_ …

Corey grinned darkly.

_Interesting…_

* * *

“Welcome to _Farmageddon!_ ” Shawn burst out; his hands opened widely to the moonless black sky once they got inside the farm, presenting the main surprise to Sallie.

The air was cold, heavy with the scent of sweet candy and fiery, wood-burning smoke.

9:30PM on Halloween night, and the Corn Farm near Paul’s home was thriving with people. Shawn’s friends surveyed their surroundings, seeing several buildings all around them, a corn field further ahead. The buildings were lit up with various lights, haunting sound effects and intense Halloween-themed music played in the distance from overhead speakers, drowning the farmland with an aura of horror and terror. The actors were already roaming around, bloodied nurses and crazed clowns giggling impishly like school kids. In a strange way, this place was simply Disneyland for adults…that was horror-related…and scary…and not suitable for children!

The group had gathered outfits ready for Halloween. Of course, the boys went as their band attire, the red jumpsuits and masks. All but Sallie and Corey had masks, but that was okay. Corey had redone his performer mask from his gig a few days ago, the black crosses on his eyes and stitching around his face, donning in his black jeans and suit jacket. Sallie remained in her casual clothes, with no mask, but she was content. She was enjoying the atmosphere around her.

“This is _far_ better than trick or treating.” Sallie smiled, sniffing the cold air, looking up at the few stars above them.

“So, where do you wanna go first, Sal?” Shawn asked, his Clown mask forever smiling. A woman nearby screamed at the sight of Shawn, and he faced her, tilting his head at her. “Rude!” He spat as she fled away, and he turned back to Sallie, waiting her answer.

“What are these places?”

“Well!” And with a dramatic wave of his hand, Shawn began to point out each building as he introduced them. “That is _Rave to the Grave_ , a dance club. Duh! That one is _The Meat Locker_ , where we meet Paul’s piggy family!” Shawn pointed behind them. “ _Freak Street_ is there, and over there is _The Beast of Terror! Zombie Outlaw_ right past that cornfield, and here!” Shawn turned, both arms directing to the biggest building. “Is my favourite. It’s my home!”

“What’s that one?” Jim asked, his face hidden behind a twisted jester mask, its chin pointed.

“ _Contagion_. It’s the house of Clowns!”

“Ah!” Mick boomed, holding a finger up, his eyes icy-fierce behind his steel hockey-style mask. “Your home! I get it!”

“And the cornfield?” Sallie asked curiously, seeing the growing line of waiting visitors spanning out from it.

“That’s just a place where you get chased with chainsaws.” Shawn said casually with a wave of his hand, ignoring the horrified stares of Jim and Paul. The Clown rubbed his hands together. “So, Sal, what will it be?”

Sallie had to think, seeing the imploring gazes of her friends as they waited for her to answer. Corey was certain she was going to pick the cornfield, so he was stunned when she pointed at the Meat Locker.

“Let’s go see Paul’s family!” Sallie squeaked happily, like a child at a fairground. In a way, she _was_. And together, the friends approached the building.

* * *

Pig-faced people were screaming the moment they came in, laughing manically and slamming against any hard surface, trying to induce a cheap jump-scare out of their visitors. And it was amusing when they spotted Paul, all snorting in a strange excitement, as if reuniting with a family member.

“Brother! Join us!” One pig-man called out, blood raining down his face as he snapped a look at Shawn. He pointed at him. “It’s a Clown! _Traitor!_ ”

Sallie was entertained by the scene, nestled comfortable against Corey as they walked through the small dark hallway, lights flashing like lightning. The further they explored the other buildings, Corey took the lead with Sallie, grabbing her hand and allowing her to follow behind him, protecting her from the fake attacks they were going to get. His fingers interlaced with hers, and Corey felt a sense of want from her. Sure, she was just a friend, his best friend, but he felt happier holding her hand. Corey stopped in the middle of the hallway as their friends continued down, Shawn jeering at his fellow clowns.

“Corey?” Sallie replied, cocking a brow. “You’re not scared, are you?”

Corey turned around, looking down at her and he smiled back, warm and comforting.

“Nah. Are you?”

“I’m having the best time of my life…” She grabbed his other hand and held it against her chest, looking up to Corey. “Seriously, thank you…this is the best birthday ever.” A scream sounded in the distance, followed by Jim laughing:

“Mick, it’s only fucking Joey!”

“Ha! Fucking got you!” Joey’s voice echoed down the hall, shortly followed by a squeal. No doubt Mick chasing him.

Corey and Sallie giggled softly, hearing the banter further down.

“I’m…sorry, about your breakup.” Sallie said at last. “I’ve been meaning to tell you that face-to-face-”

“It’s okay.” Corey hummed, pressing his forehead against Sallie’s. “It’ll take a while, but we’ll get through this.”

“Yes, we will!” Letting go of his hands, Sallie wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged onto Corey. He returned the embrace, nuzzling his face into her small shoulders. She smelt so freshly, a gentle floral powder he had never noticed until now-

At that point, the hallway lit up, _too_ bright, and Sallie screamed in horror when she saw a small figure running towards them from behind Corey, donned in a familiar black jumpsuit and a gasmask. Corey’s eyes widened when he saw another figure running towards him behind Sallie, a black jumpsuit, only this time he had a white mask with a phallic-long nose. Corey grunted, clutching onto Sallie and spun around to protect her from the approaching threat, seeing the other figure and pushed Sallie against the wall, pinning her with his body away from anyone and the two strangers grabbed Corey’s shoulders.

That was the first time the actors touched them. They were all aware that the actors stuck by strict rules of not touching their visitors, so when the two strangers grabbed Corey, Sallie felt her stomach sink. She didn’t know what was happening, but the moment Corey was dragged off her, she lunged for the first thing she saw. The pickle-nosed man, and threw herself against him, holding him against the wall.

“Whoa, fuck!” The masked man cried out. “Calm down! Calm down!”

“Hey hey hey!” Shawn’s voice rippled through the corridor, and all four of them calmed down. “Guys, it’s okay! They’re friends!”

“Friends?” Sallie and Corey blurted, looking at their pursuers and suddenly removed themselves off them. “What do you-?”

“This was part of the surprise.” Shawn grinned, a hand on the shoulder of one of the strangers. “Corey, meet more of our bandmates. Chris and Sid.”

The newcomers, Chris and Sid, began to remove their masks, revealing their faces to the stunned singer and Brit. Chris grinned cheekily, dirty blond hair tied in a ponytail.

“Yo, sorry for the fright. Shawn told us to surprise you.” Chris greeted. Sid was smaller than Chris, naturally slimmer in width. His hair was formed in a small, crimson mohawk, grinning brightly, his boyish features charming in the dim light.

“Yeah, though the looks on your fucking faces were amazing!” Sid giggled, replacing the mask back onto his head.

“Glad we weren’t just being fucking attacked.” Sallie sighed, a hand on her chest as she recovered. Corey gave Shawn a hard glare.

“You shouldn’t have fucking done that,” Corey grilled at the Clown under his breath. “After _that_ moment?!”

“Hey, look at her. She’s fine!” Shawn convinced, his attention turning to Sallie, who was smirking in amusement as she flicked her hand at Chris’ picklenose mask, watching the long nose flop and wobbled. And Sallie was fine, though Corey was furious at the thoughtless act. “This was a perfect time to introduce you guys to new friends.”

“We need to talk about this later,” Corey murmured, his tone intense now. “But right now, no more surprise-attacks, okay?”

“Corey, it was a joke.”

“Yeah, well it’s not fucking funny.”

“Shut the fuck up, you two.” Mick grumbled, hearing the bickering. “Not tonight.”

Corey couldn’t see it, but he could tell that Shawn was shooting a hot glare at Corey through the forever-smiling clown mask.

The rest of the night consisted of Sid and Chris joining them, and very quickly, they became friends with Sallie. Corey watched Sallie carefully, seeing her approaching the corner of the room and suddenly an actor lunged at her with a fake knife. Instincts took hold of her and she screamed, backing away and laughing as she hid behind Mick. The actor saw the towering man and dropped his knife in awe. The sight was rather comical, but Corey felt no reason the laugh. There was something surfacing inside of him that he didn’t like. He wasn’t sure what it was at first. When he returned by Sallie’s side and grabbed her hand to guide her through darkness, more of a relief for him that she was okay, Chris had yanked Sallie away from Corey and pulled her into the other room, leaving Corey fuming. And if it wasn’t Chris taking her away from him, it was Shawn…and if it wasn’t Shawn, it was Joey…and if it wasn’t Joey-

“Hey,”

Corey opened his eyes, finding his hands clutching on his skull and looked at Paul, his eyes smiling behind his pig-mask. “You okay, dude?”

“Yeah, just getting tired…” Corey lied fluidly, and Paul nodded, not seeing it.

“Don’t worry, we’re nearly done soon.” Paul reassured his vocalist, patting his back, leaving Corey with his uncertain thoughts. The longer the night went, the more intense his thoughts became….

He watched as Mick scooped Sallie up suddenly in his arms, the little woman squealing in delight as the beast held her bridal-style and ran into _Zombie Outlaw_ , the paintballing activity, joining Shawn and Joey.

Corey sat on a small haystack, watching them, mixed about his emotions.

He suddenly didn’t like how his friends were so close to Sallie…


	28. Lover's Embrace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains a sex-scene.  
> \+ Dirty Talk  
> \+ Masturbation (Sex Toy)  
> +Pseudo-Sex

Corey had agreed to take Sallie back to his place, and Sallie was fine with this. Returning to an empty house after such a good day left Sallie a bitter taste. There was an underlining fear that this was all fictional, that this whole day was nothing but a heated dream.

So, she felt comfort in returning to Corey’s apartment that night when the others left for their homes, fully enjoying the night-out.

It was in the same state as she remembered, the last time she was here. When Corey crashed onto the sofa, Sallie placed her bag on the sofa beside him and turned to the kitchen. Corey dug his hands in-between the sofa cushions and hesitated, looking for the remote.

But then he listened.

“You better not be sorting out that kitchen, woman.” Corey said with a soft smirk.

Silence.

“No….” Came the reply from Sallie at a length, and Corey shook his head, standing up.

“Seriously, don’t tidy. It’s your birthday.”

Sallie appeared by the doorway to the small, neglected kitchen, cocking her head to the side.

“Technically, it’s not my birthday anymore.” Sallie grinned, pointing at the clock that hung on the wall. “It’s 1AM, so it’s the 1st of November.”

“Fuck off.” Corey chuckled. “Don’t be so damn picky, you.” He walked towards Sallie, grabbing her hand and pulling her out. “I’ll sort out this shit-hole tomorrow, but until we wake up, it’s still your birthday.” He tugged Sallie to the sofa. “Tonight, you’re sleeping in my bed.”

“But what about you?” Sallie asked, halting and looking at the sofa. Her eyes turned back to him. “I can’t let you sleep on the sofa.”

“You’re the guest. And the birthday girl.”

“But no, I can’t do that to you.” Sallie grabbed Corey’s arms and held him. “I’d feel rude.”

Corey stared down at her, slowly reaching for her hands and holding them in his lean palms.

“We could…stay in the same bed. I mean we’ve slept with each other before.” He quickly corrected himself. “Not that way, but…you get me.”

“Yeah yeah, I get you.” Sallie smirked, shaking her head softly as she drew Corey in a small hug. “Thank you for today. I haven’t had such fun like that in a long time.”

Corey slowly drew his arms around her and hugged her a little tighter, face pressed into her hair, smelling it.

“You’re welcome. They’re good guys, we look after each other.” Though he didn’t know Sid and Chris that well, he was certain he’d get along with them, so long Chris remained far away from Sallie…there wouldn’t be a problem.

He heard Sallie yawn against his chest, and tutting, he stroked her hair. “C’mon, let’s get ready for bed.”

Taking her bag, Corey brought Sallie to his room. The light bulb was not working, so they had to carefully walk through the small room in the darkness, using whatever little moonlight they had seeping through the cracks of the boarded windows. The light from the kitchen remained on, granting them a bit more visibility. Respecting each other’s privacy, Corey turned around and Sallie followed suit, not looking at one another as they got dressed and ready for bed. Sallie had finished promptly with her tank-top and shorts, turning around and stared at Corey removing his shirt, revealing his toned back, seeing the defined arch of his lower back, his ribs wide.

Sallie had to force herself to look away as Corey bent down and removed his pants. But it didn’t even matter, her best friend turned around and smirked, standing in his boxer-shorts proudly.

“Don’t you have pyjamas?” Sallie asked faintly, feeling as though she was invasive of Corey’s space now. Corey shrugged.

“Never really wear clothes for bed. You’re lucky I’ve got my boxers on.” Corey smirked, patting the bed, waiting for Sallie to get in it first. Taking a few empty bottles off the end of his bed and placing them on a side table, Sallie lifted the blanket and sat onto the bed, taking a deep breath as she leaned against the headboard, pulling the sheets up on her. They felt heavier than usual, _thicker_.

Satisfied that Sallie was comfy, Corey lifted his side of the bedsheets and tucked himself in. Sallie watched, shivering to be fully aware of a half-naked man lying next to her, her body reacting promptly to the body-heat that emitted from him.

“You okay with this?” Sallie asked meekly, and Corey snorted.

“I’m fine!” Seeing a shy smile from Sallie, Corey shuffled onto his side, resting his head in his hand as his elbow dug into his pillow, and he watched as Sallie slouched further down in the bed, her head swallowed in his thin pillows. “Comfy?”

“Yes.” Sallie sighed, looking back at Corey. “Just don’t fart, okay?”

“I can’t promise that.” Corey chuckled.

Sallie watched her best friend, seeing him lying on his side casually, as if having no intention of settling down and sleeping. His eyes regarded her with a possessive kindness that Sallie thought she felt a bit unnerved about, but realise she felt rather…good. She enjoyed the way Corey was looking at her, gawking at her like a piece of meat, the sensation of being wanted by the opposite sex…

“You okay?” Sallie asked after a time, and Corey seemed to have zoned out, his eyes suddenly looking back up at her as he registered her voice.

“Yeah,” He replied softly, pausing. “I’ve got a few things I need to ask you about.”

Sallie sucked on her tongue in concern.

“Go on.”

“Y’know when we were watching _Halloween?”_ Corey was grinning dangerously now, his eyes glimmered in anticipation as he watched Sallie slowly nod. “I was…” His gaze dropped, searching the word, his finger drawing faint lines in the mattress sheet beneath them. “…watching you and noticed something very odd.” His eyes looked back at Sallie to gauge her expression, and expectantly, she looked confused. How cute.

“Odd?” She asked, her brows knitting in uncertainty. “Like…”

Corey moved closer to Sallie, his head tilted to one side as he looked up at his best friend, grinning dirtily.

“Someone was getting horny when Michael Myers was chasing Laurie.”

Her pale skin flushed darkly, and Corey chuckled under his breath, knowing that the reaction was enough to tell him the truth.

“I wasn’t!”

“If I touched your pussy now, you’d be wet. For sure.”

He felt Sallie’s legs move as subtly as possible, crossing over.

“Nah,” But that was all Sallie said, shuffling further down in the bed, pulling the bedsheets up and covering her shoulders and mouth. “I was tensed up.”

“I know.” Corey lewdly whispered. “I know what was happening to you. I was watching the whole thing.”

“We were there to watch the fucking movie, not each other.”

Cocking a brow, Corey tilted his head again.

“It’s not like _you_ haven’t been watching me all this time.”

That shut Sallie up, and she pulled the rest of the blanket over her embarrassed face.

“I…don’t know what it is…” Sallie’s voice muffled beneath the sheets. “Something about…being chased by a predator like that…of being hunted down…” Her head popped from beneath the bedsheets, her eyes regarding Corey. He was watching her gently. “It’s just…kinda sexy.”

“That’s normal.” Corey shrugged, smiling. “Everyone has a weird fetish. And you happen to like to be the prey.”

“But…it’s dumb, isn’t it?”

Corey shook his head.

“Not at all.” He replied, a hand rubbing her hip beneath the bedsheets, and Sallie felt the urgency in pushing herself against his body, to feel the naked warmth radiating off him. “You’re pent up, hm?” Sallie glared at him, but Corey continued, being cruel now. “You’re pent up from the idea of being hunted down by a strong and powerful male, his face hidden behind a mask,” His hand reached for her throat and grabbed it ever so softly, teasingly. “Grabbing your neck and holding you down as he has his way with you…” His voice groaned, deep and sultry now, igniting Sallie’s terribly wild arousal and she shuddered.

“Stop it.” She whispered, patting his hand away from her neck and held onto her throat. But she had to admit, he was right. She felt a terrific thrill just from that contact.

“Do masks turn you on?”

“Hey, I didn’t ask for an interview in bed!” Sallie forced a laugh, cleverly evading his question, now feeling her whole body becoming hot. Corey backed off then, but he was smirking ever so intriguingly. He wasn’t done.

“You need a release.”

“I need fucking sleep!”

Corey didn’t retort. He slipped out of the bed and reached for his bag, lifting it onto the bed and began to go through it.

“Looks like Corey is gonna have to fuck you…”

Sallie felt her body clench at those words, feeling her chest becoming hot and her lower stomach throbbing, her heart rattling inside of her ribs.

 _Just open your legs and let him have you!_ Sallie thought, but she resisted. _I’m not a Jodie!_

Corey grabbed something from his bag and suddenly threw a small box at Sallie. It landed against her legs and when she looked down at it, she immediately glared at Corey.

“Why the fuck did you bring this back?!” Sallie yelled, furious to see the dildo box returning to her. Corey tossed his bag on the floor carelessly and chuckled, getting back inside of the bed and taking the box.

“I thought you could use it after tonight.” He opened the box and Sallie inched back away slightly when he pulled the fake cock out, throwing the box over his shoulder. He held the dildo with both hands, one pinching the perfectly formed head, and the other holding at the equally-rounded balls, looking at it. “This is cute, a beginner’s dick.”

“I’m not using it!”

Corey tilted his head again, his dreadlocks rolling off his firm shoulders.

“Why not, virgin?”

“Because I won’t!”

Corey blinked.

“You’re lying.” He observed, his tone softer now, but was still heavily seductive. He waved the dildo a bit, showing its flexibility as it flopped from side to side. “You’re scared, aren’t you?”

Sallie looked away, and Corey knew he hit the nail on the head. He now understood Sallie’s little notions whenever she was struggling to tell the truth. But he knew she had a hard time lying straight at Corey.

“Yes…” She whispered, a little reluctantly. “I don’t want to be dirty.”

“Dirty?” Corey scoffed. “Sal, there’s nothing wrong with having fun with a toy. That’s why they’re invented. That’s why dickheads like you and me sell them. To make people happy, remember?” He leaned closer, pressing his head against Sallie’s skull and whispered sexily. “There is nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone fucking uses them, just like how everyone jacks off. It’ll make you feel good. Plus,” He held the dildo right at her face. “It’d be nice to see you wearing my present before any of the others, because I’m your favourite.” He smirked and was relieved when Sallie giggled lightly. She was relaxing.

Corey placed the dildo in her hands. “Go on.” He whispered with a slightly commanding tone to his words. “ _Use me…_ ”

Sallie shook hard, her pussy now throbbing slightly beneath her shorts.

“I’ve never used one before…” She whispered, looking at Corey in dismay. The moonlight made her look so stunning, like a young vampire begging her long-time lover for his support. And Corey supported her.

“Neither have I.” Corey grinned. “On me, I mean. But…” He waved his hand. “Wanna try it?”

Sallie looked at her toy, holding the dildo in her hands, feeling her thumb running along the bulging vein and for a time she wondered how it would feel inside of her. Something much bigger and harder than her own small fingers. Swallowing hard, she faced Corey back and nodded. She was very curious now, and her body was practically throbbing in eager anticipation.

“What…do I do?”

“You shove it in you, you dumbass.” Corey snickered, a hand reaching for her small hands that held onto the dildo, stroking the back of her hands and fingers tenderly. “Want me to help?”

His eyes looked back at Sallie deeply, determined, and seeing her begging him to help her, to guide her to uncharted lands, he was perfectly okay with it. The human body didn’t scare him like it did with her. Pressing his face against her hair, his lips brushed softly against her ear. “I’ll be gentle.” He whispered, taking the dildo off her hands and tucked his arm back beneath the sheets. “Take your shorts off. I won’t look. Keep the covers on you if you feel comfortable.”

Sallie was relieved with that. She hated the idea of Corey seeing her naked body and judging her. She wasn’t anything like Jodie, having no supermodel figure.

Corey watched as Sallie grabbed her shorts and began to remove them, her legs bending and lifting as she pulled the shorts off from her ankles and lifted them out from beneath the bedsheets, dropping it between him and her. “Good.” Corey purred, his head still so invasively close to her, his hot breath grazing over her neck, and Sallie’s jaw tightened as she felt it, shuddering and trembling slightly.

Corey kept his eyes on Sallie, watching her response, making sure he was careful and gentle, calculating her reaction to what he was about to do.

Sallie stared down as she saw Corey’s hand move beneath the bedsheet, his hand and the toy pressed against the sheets, and she felt him placing the dildo on her stomach. “Just for you, I promise you I won’t touch your pussy,” Corey groaned lowly to her ear, his voice soothing her, guiding her to everything he was doing, and she felt a sense of safety with him, trusting him so much. “Unless you ask me to, okay?”

“Y-yes…” She panted in a tiny voice. Corey’s lean hand pressed at her thigh, stroking it delicately, soothing her nerves. He could feel her shake hard. Truly a virgin. His hand slowly glided down to the inside of her thigh, and she whimpered, her body spiking in shock.

“Shh…” Corey hushed calmly, his nose brushing at her hair. “It’s okay, you’re nervous. Just relax.”

“I’m so…I don’t know…”

“You’re nervous, and that’s okay.” Corey whispered, reassuring. “If it gets too much-”

“No, no.” Sallie interrupted quietly, shaking her head. Corey spied the willingness and inquisitiveness in her deep blue eyes. “K-Keep going, please.”

Corey smiled tenderly.

“Sure.”

His hand pulled Sallie’s thigh away, parting them so that her panties were on full display beneath the warmth of the bedsheets. Corey took the dildo from her stomach and slowly ran its shaft along her pussy, feeling the resistance of the silicone-toy rubbing and tugging at her cotton panties, which were, as Corey predicted, drenched from before. “Does this feel good?” Corey groaned to her ear, watching Sallie closing her eyes delicately, falling into the lust spell of this act.

“Yes…so good…”

“Want me to…fuck you with it?”

Sallie’s mouth opened, losing her voice, and she nodded instead. Corey smirked gently as Sallie grabbed her panties and yanked them off her feet, dropping them out from the bed onto the floor. She just wanted something thick inside of her now.

When she was naked below the waist, her eyes lifted and she faced Corey, his handsome face hovering close to her. She smelt his musk and only fell in love deeper with it.

_I wanna kiss you…I wanna kiss you…_

Her small hand slipped out from the bedsheet, quivering so cutely as she reached for Corey’s chest, her palm pressed onto it, and it slid up, running behind his neck and he allowed Sallie to pull herself closer to him, nuzzling against his chest as she hugged him, feeling secure. She swallowed hard. “You okay?” Corey asked thoughtfully, watching the little Brit nodding.

“Just…just wanna hold you.”

It was a simple comment, but Corey felt a wave of something he hadn’t felt before, a sense of being wanted. Sentimental, giving him the impression that Sallie felt safe with him, and that was something he wanted so dearly.

Sallie felt the cold silicon head of the dildo pushing against her clit, which was hard and nubby at this point, and she squeaked. Corey jolted in surprise at the noise, and she faced him from below, giving him a sheepish smile.

“You’re sensitive, aren’t you?” Corey cooed teasingly.

“Oh, fuck off,” Sallie grunted, tutting, before she pulled him closer to him, holding his head against her chest. Small ribbons of whimpers left through Sallie’s quivering lips as she felt Corey shifting the dildo against her swollen pussy lips. Never feeling this before, every movement he caused made her shake and wince, her legs aching. But he was teasing her-

Her hand clutched at his skull, her nails digging in his dreadlocks. “Just fuck me with it, dammit…” She grunted, closing her eyes. And that comment was setting a fiery lust inside of Corey, incredibly aroused by the little virgin’s desperate pleads. His cock was already erecting against his boxer shorts, demanding an escape in its tight prison, but he didn’t mind the pressure he felt there. It only made it better.

He felt the head of the dildo popping inside of Sallie’s pussy, and she cried out abruptly, her eyes flying open as she gasped to the ceiling, and Corey persisted, pushing the dildo slowly inside of her, forcing her pussy walls to break slightly and opening up to accommodate the dildo. “Oh my god!” Sallie squeaked in a clenched gasp, her arms hugging Corey’s head hard as she felt her pussy stretching, feeling the ridges and texture of the dildo rubbing against her inner walls. Just as Corey pushed the dildo balls-deep, the heel of his palm pushing onto her clit and Sallie’s hand scrambled down and grabbed his wrist. But not to stop him. Corey halted, however, feeling Sallie’s hand running down his and touching the dildo, and soon she touched her own pussy lips, feeling them around the sex toy. “I-It’s inside me, fuck!”

Corey smirked rapturously at that, looking up at Sallie from her chest, his eyes almost drunk with lust. Her face was fucking adorable, her eyes glistening in a mixture of happiness and anxiety, her face now a pink flush.

“You’re a big girl, now,” He groaned hotly. “Taking the whole dick in like a horny little girl.”

“C-Corey…” Sallie was panting hard now, her breasts jittering at her breathing. “It…feels good…”

“Oh, we haven’t even started.” Corey murmured, his eyes looking darker. He began to pull the dildo out, and Sallie whined to feel it tugging at her intensely tight insides with it. It felt bizarre, the sensation of her pussy being penetrated, to feel so full…it felt amazing. Never had she felt like this.

Corey pulled the dildo until he felt the head of it popping out, and he pushed it all the way in again, dragging it, being slow to let his virgin friend get used to it, but he felt her hand grabbing onto his and encouraged him to go faster. This intrigued Corey.

“Faster…faster please…” Sallie breathed, her head immediately filling with the hot haze of desire, making her almost too drunk to think about anything but Corey. Hearing her pleads, Corey sat up now, the blanket rolling off his naked body and he was bracing himself, his hand gripping harder onto the base of the dildo and just as she commanded, he thrusted the toy faster inside of her, feeling it clenching hard hungrily. “Corey….Corey, shit!” Sallie whined, her eyes widening in eagerness, looking down as her best friend fucked her with the toy, and she leaned back into her pillow, moaning to the air. Corey was huffing hard, his eyes narrowed and hard in focus, the primal instinct in letting her feel absolute pleasure caused by him. His ego throbbed inside of him, wanting this achievement in breaking his virgin friend and making her cum with simply a toy, proving to her that he was very good in bed.

Sallie’s legs staggered beneath the bedsheets, the heels scrambling at the mattress, trying to find grip, but was having a hard time. “Corey…. Corey… _Corey, I can’t-”_

She wasn’t close in cumming, Corey knew that. She was whimpering, wanting to feel much more pleasure. Gasping throatily, Corey rapidly moved, pushing and holding the toy cock deep inside Sallie’s pussy and he threw the blanket off them both, his eyes full of animal lust, teeth gritting. He hadn’t felt this good in a long time, and like an addiction, the two friends wanted more. Corey shifted between Sallie’s legs, his cock already throbbing and bulging against his boxers and he grabbed Sallie’s legs, lifting them both and holding them against his chest and shoulders, so that she had support. He reached down for the toy, but Sallie snatched his hand, stopping him.

Corey glared at her, sweat running down his forehead.

“F-Fuck me with it…” Sallie panted frantically, and Corey blinked.

“I-I am…”

“I mean…” Swallowing, licking her dry lips, Sallie’s hands reached for Corey’s waist and she pulled him, pushing his body between her legs, and Corey bit his lip hard when he realised what his friend was doing. She made his hips push against the flat base of the dildo, pushing it hard against his own cock beneath his boxers, but was still holding it inside of her throbbing pussy. He took this moment to look at it. It was rather adorable, fat and plump, glistening wetly with her excessive damp excitement, the pubic hairs that were recently growing from her last shave shone in the dim light. He could feel the heat of her pussy near his balls. “Fuck….me…”

“Fuck, Sal. You’re horny as fuck…” Corey snarled sensually, pushing his hips hard against the dildo base, and penetrated her deeper, watching Sallie shutting her eyes tight and crying out. He was going to pseudo-fuck her. “Wasn’t expecting this from you…”

“I…I need this…” Sallie hissed, her hands reaching for his head and pulled him down, grasping at his dreadlocks like ropes and pulled. Corey growled deeply. “You make me feel so good…”

For a time, the furious stare of a sexually-aroused monster simmered, and replacing it was the gentle gaze of a caring friend.

“Good…” He purred, kissing Sallie’s forehead, and then cupped her cute face in his battered hands. “I’m gonna make you cum.”

Sallie nodded desperately.

“Please…please…” A smirk tugged at Corey’s lips, almost cockily, and then the friendly gaze diminished, and the return of his determined, feral gaze came back. Sallie felt his fingers tighten and he began to fuck her hard, using the dildo to fuck her without having sex with her. This was strange for them both, but they were already too deep in this sexual tension and lusty waves that none of them cared. They both wanted a release. Corey thrusted with a force that horrified Sallie, and she screamed his name, her pussy clenching and throbbing harder and harder, feeling the rise of her orgasm coming to get her. Sweat flicked from Corey’s brows and chin as he thrusted his hips between her milky thighs. Feeling and hearing it squelching around the dildo, Corey felt his chest go on fire.

“You’re so fucking good.” Corey rewarded Sallie with a groan, and he swore he saw her eyes well up in tears.

“You-You too…” Came the tiny voice, so submissive and small, and Corey felt a thriving storm of pleasure at the tone of it. He was so used in Jodie’s sexual demand, how she would dominate him in the bedroom, and while it was fun for a few tries, it got tiresome that she was always in command. Come to think of it, Jodie _always_ had control. She always belittled Corey with names that eventually began to ruin his mentality. Aftercare never existed, but Corey was a man. A tough man that didn’t needed it…

He thought, anyway.

Right now, he had a woman that was submissive to him, and under his spell. But she wasn’t just anyone. She was someone of value, his best friend and he would protect her from anything. Including himself.

One day he was going to scare her, he knew that.

That thought worried him, and with a husky moan, Corey pushed Sallie’s legs off his shoulders, spreading them and he hunched over her, cradling her head against his chest as he continued to fuck her with the toy, his heavy panting suffocated against her hair.

“I wanna-wanna make you feel good!” Corey gasped, his eyes rolling back as he felt his own orgasm from this strange method reaching him.

“Y-You are!” Sallie cried out against his burning sweltering chest. “I can-can feel it! So close!”

“Hold on.”

As commanded, Sallie’s hands latched around Corey’s back, and he felt her nails digging in her back and scratching, pulling down as she greedily held onto him, small gasps escaping her tiny lungs. Corey chuckled dirtily between pants. “Y-You know, I didn’t even think I’d ever-!”

He howled suddenly when Sallie screamed, and for some reason she felt the compelling desire in biting him, hard, on his neck. “ _Fuck, Sal!_ ” Corey bellowed in a mixture of shock, but he moaned in sublime bliss as she bit his neck hard, her nails puncturing his flesh. He bit his lip again, grinning almost stupidly as his eyes rolled back in lewd-drunkenness. And feeling the way Sallie clung onto him, and how it was starting to feel more harder pushing the dildo inside of her, he knew what was happening, and his best friend squealed against his neck, leaving a deep bite mark in his throat, saliva drenching his salted-sweat neck as her face pushed against his chest.

“ _Fuck!_ ” Sallie screamed as her orgasm washed over her, her mind becoming fuzzy and blurred, all senses except raw pleasure beating through her as her orgasm hit her, _harder_ , harder than she had ever experienced, and just as she did, Corey felt the domino-effect of her orgasm, hearing Sallie becoming a horny little woman beneath him, her pants and squeals of delight triggering his orgasm, and his cock throbbed as he came inside of his boxers, feeling the hot jetting of his cum spewing against his underwear, his balls tightening and enduring the constant pressure he fed himself with the dildo.

But just as Sallie’s orgasm ended, Corey threw himself back, collapsing onto his back at the bottom of his bed, and the two friends laid splayed on the mattress, staring at the ceiling in a stunned gaze. Sallie whined when she felt her pussy swelling and throbbing, eventually pushing the dildo out of her pussy and she tightened her shaking thighs together. Her entire body was on fire, her heart beating hard in her skull and she felt slightly dizzy. But she soon took note what happened, in their hypnotic arousal, both had engaged in a sexual act that wasn’t even supposed to be _this_ close to actual sex.

Her hand rested onto her lower stomach, feeling the pleasure still simmering inside of her, and she rolled her head to one side, seeing Corey lying on the bed, arms and legs spread, his cock beneath his boxers twitching, and she could see the wet patch of his ejaculation there.

Weakly, Sallie sat up, her entire body feeling so numb with satisfaction it felt difficult to even control it.

But she had nothing else in mind but Corey. She looked at the man before her and like a little wild mate, Sallie crawled towards him and collapsed beside him, resting her head on his chest, feeling the sweat build up in there. Corey slowly drew his arms around her, pulling her in an exhausted embrace and held her there.

“Did…did we fuck?” He murmured eventually; his eyes fixated on the crumbling ceiling.

“K-Kinda?” Sallie mewed, equally exhausted. But then a gentle smile lined her voice. “But…that was amazing…” She added, leaning over to Corey and kissing his cheek. “Thank you…I never felt anything like it…”

Corey grinned, his eyes drooping.

“Nah, thank _you_ …”

“You made me feel safe…” Sallie smiled, closing her eyes for a time. “I’m so lucky to have you…”

Corey began to snore, and Sallie smiled warmly. One leg rested over his thighs, she clung onto Corey and she held onto him.

Only for Corey to sleepily cling onto her too, turning onto his side and hugged her in his sleep, his legs entwining her own in a lover’s embrace.


	29. Dehumanized

****

****

**November, 1994**

For the first time in nine years, Sallie had woken up from a peaceful slumber, and felt _okay_.

Sallie moved under the bedsheets; her face buried in the pillow as she dreamt serenely. But eventually when the strong scent of coffee and fresh air came to her nose, it roused her awake. Slowly, Sallie’s eyes opened, shrouded under the blanket. She was expecting the hurling of insults to come to her, the terrible nightmares to consume her, the depression to cloak over her and dampen her entire view on life, just waiting for that depression to grasp onto her.

But it never came to her.

She waited a little more, her eyes fixated on the corner of the room, to which she realised was not her bedroom.

Corey.

With the way her legs splayed wide open, her body arched in a way she was practically sleeping horizontally, she knew she was the only body in that bed. But she heard movement from the other room. Even soft singing.

Still, that despair never came to her. She felt okay, _better_ than okay. She felt terribly wonderful, her mind ever so clearer. There was no fatigue hanging off her.

Nestling in the blankets, she could smell Corey’s body in the sheets, and her own scent, only coming to terms to what had happened last night.

_Yes, yes it did happen._

She had to reassure herself, in case her darkened thoughts took this opportunity from her. She claimed it immediately, an achievement she thought she would regret, but found herself not doing so. Instead, she felt rather proud, rather _good_.

She felt _sexy_ …

For once, she felt desirable and attractive. Yes, the moment was quick for them both, but a man actually laid his hands onto her body, to which she had accepted to be grossly unappealing and unwanted. But _Corey touched her._ Corey, her incredibly handsome best friend, made her orgasm.

Sallie blinked and her head shifted up slightly, seeing the dildo on the bedside table, another reminder of what happened last night was not just an elusive fantasy. Her body rolled onto her back and she faced the ceiling, her mind searching for clues to what had happened last night. And it wasn’t as if they were drunk, Sallie would never drink, and Corey wasn’t even tipsy. He had maybe one or two beers, but even then…

Their actions were both calculated and intentional. Both agreed upon the act and enjoyed it thoroughly. Her body felt warm just from the thought of how close she was to Corey last night, feeling his chest resting on her, his face so close to her neck-

_I bit Corey…_

And to her surprise, she smirked dirtily at that. A small savage thought came to her, a pride in how she claimed the unwanted boyfriend of Jodie as her own now. Sallie had left her own mark on him, and it wasn’t as if Corey didn’t want it. She made him cum from that.

_Take that, you cunt._

Leisurely, Sallie rose from the bed and sat on the edge of it, brushing her wild hair back. Her panties and shorts were back on, but she could feel their dirty act on them. Corey had dressed her at some point, what a sweetheart.

Gradually, Sallie stood up, stretching and smiling as she heard her best friend humming in the other room, and began to follow the tune of it, like an enchanted melody.

Corey was in the kitchen, dressed in only his boxer shorts, standing by the stove. In one hand was a frying pan handle, and in the other was a spatula. Cooking in the oily pan was small pancakes that Corey had made from scratch of whatever leftovers he had. The tune he was producing was endearing, and Sallie was smiling warmly at it. A part of her told her that she made him this happy, and she was so proud, so grateful for it. She hadn’t seen Corey this happy.

Her bare feet patted on the warped laminated flooring, and it was loud enough to disrupt Corey’s humming and he turned around, seeing Sallie standing by the doorway of the kitchen, looking adorably dazed.

“Morning,” Corey grinned, flashing Sallie a flirtatious look, and his best friend snorted at it.

“Look at you,” Sallie commented softly. “Your ego must be so hard right now,” They both were thinking of the same thing.

“That’s not the only thing that’s hard.”

Sallie had to cover her blush with her hands from that comment, watching Corey lovingly.

Corey faced back to the food, flipping one of the pancakes over, and cussing to himself to find its cooked side much more burnt than intended. But as he focused on the breakfast, Sallie was staring at him. She was seeing Corey in a completely different light now.

He wasn’t just an attractive best friend. He was the most handsome, sexiest fucker she had ever met. Corey ebbed a new light that was practically blinding to her, rose-tinted, stunning. He wasn’t just God’s gift to humanity and anyone he blessed their presence with, he was created by the _fucking Norse Gods_ just for _her_. A true definition of a _man._ His dreadlocks, something she had always been intrigued with, made her heart throb harder for. She wanted to brush them against her face, smelling his natural scent, nuzzling against them affectionately. His body wasn’t skinny, nor was it fat. He was _normal_ , and that was something Sallie loved about him. How _human_ he was, how obtainable he was for her. He had the smallest little belly that slightly protruded, so natural, so fucking adorable, tattoos marking his flesh that she never was able to appreciate until now, symbols of his personality, magical and unique. He wasn’t labelled by something; _he_ labelled the tattoos themselves.

Chewing on her nails slightly, her eyes dropped down to his thighs, firmly pressing against his boxer-shorts. She remembered how soft the hairs on them felt against her own legs. She had to hold down the urge to touch them again, just to feel them against her palm. And then she gawked at his feet, seeing the bone jutting against his flesh, which seemed so delicate suddenly. Corey had big long toes, manly and bigger compared to her own little feet. She didn’t even fucking _like_ feet and yet she was so fascinated to his.

Sallie took a long, shuddering breath to calm herself down. She could feel herself getting aroused just by looking at him, a new awareness of magnetism towards the man, a new primal intimacy to him that she could possibly be-

When her eyes lifted to his ass, she forced herself to look away, staring at something that wouldn’t turn her on. The radiator.

“Go sit, Sal. Food will be finished soon.” Corey’s voice seeped through her thoughts gently.

“Thanks.” Sallie replied, a bit too abrupt and she turned, hurrying to the sofa and crashing on it, hugging her legs against her chest.

_Cuddle with me, Corey-_

Her brows furrowed hard.

_Clear your head, clear your head you idiot…you don’t need to feel like this…you don’t want to ruin your friendship…fuck, fuck FUCK-!_

Frantically, Sallie grabbed the remote on the battered coffee table and turned the TV on, a perfect distraction. She surveyed the room, and noticed that Corey had tidied…

There were no bottles left scattered and discarded on the floor. The floor had been the clearest she had ever seen, showing its musty-brown colour. Old glasses had been gathered and set on the side of the sink, old CDs and an acoustic guitar was propped against the wall behind the TV. She didn’t even know he had an acoustic.

It was rather comforting.

_When did he do this? I must have been fucking out of it last night…_

_Am I surprised? I never came so hard like that before…_

_I…I want more…_

There was a shitty TV talk-show that Sallie wasn’t paying attention to, and when she heard Corey walking behind her, she looked up expectantly and smiled. He was holding two plates and handed one to Sallie.

“They’re not the best,” Corey smiled sheepishly. “I tried.”

“They smell divine,” Sallie replied truthfully. Corey placed his dish on the coffee table, and Sallie noticed how his looked more burnt than her own. When Corey approached the kitchen, Sallie promptly swapped one of her fluffier pancakes for one of his burnt pancakes, sharing the wealth and sucked on her fingers to eliminate the burning that stung her fingertips.

Corey soon returned with two mugs, setting down on the other end of the sofa and placed the mugs down.

“Enjoy,” He said, taking his plate and was immediately eating his pancakes, not seeming to notice the exchanged pancake. Good.

Smiling, Sallie sunk into the sofa and began to pinch at her own pancake, watching the chat show as a woman interviewing two women. They were talking about sex in the bedroom. How ironic.

Sallie’s eyes glanced at Corey, seeing him staring at the TV so numbly himself.

Her feet nestled against his thighs, and Corey hissed suddenly.

“Your feet are fucking cold!” He piped up, chuckling as Sallie rammed her feet underneath him.

“Warm them up for me.”

“ _Fuck!_ ” Corey howled, arching his hips slightly as Sallie’s feet delved into the warmth. “I’m gonna give you some of my fucking socks!”

“My favourite socks are the ones that say _Fuck off_ on them.” Sallie giggled, feeling Corey slightly lowering his hips, sitting on top of Sallie’s feet, and they gave each other a gentle smile.

_You need to talk to him…_

_About-?_

_The sex._

_We…didn’t actually have sex-_

_You performed a sexual act, and now you’re confused as fuck!_

_I’m not confused…no, no, I’m okay!_

_You need to know where you stand-_

_He has such gorgeous eyes…_

Sallie had been staring dreamily at Corey as her best friend demolished the remains of his pancakes, stuffing his fingers into his lips and scoffed it up.

_I wonder what those fingers feel like inside of me…_

_Stuff them in my mouth, dammit-!_

But Sallie was very aware in her thoughts, and after she finished her pancakes, she set the plate down.

“Corey,” She started, and the dreadlocked male faced her.

“Hm?”

_You’ve got his attention now, ask him._

“Um…”

_Fuck!_

Corey waited patiently, his head slightly tilting back as he watched his best friend stumble on her words. He had a feeling he knew where this was going.

“Can I cuddle with you please?”

If she could have slapped her hand on her face, she would! Her mind seized in frustration. Her body went freezing, even _it_ was disappointed in her.

But it didn’t matter. Corey gave her a cocky smile, and held an arm up, invitingly.

Sallie immediately moved up on the sofa, pressing her head against his chest as his arm held over her, holding her against his body. Her small hand pressed against his chest, feeling him breathing, feeling his heart beating.

She caught the soft bruising on his neck, seeing the small indents of her teeth in his flesh, and wanted to bite him again. Her body remembered how it felt when Corey snarled like a wild beast at her biting, lustful, dirty.

It was so _arousing_ …

It took all her strength to not bite him at all or do anything remotely lewd. Though her body was desperate for more attention like that. It was thriving with the urgency of mating with him again, and she wanted to just yank his boxer-shorts off and making him scream her name.

She held back, so hard.

The TV show didn’t seem so boring after all…

* * *

**December, 1994**

There was no actual conversation about that incident. Corey never mentioned it and Sallie was almost too scared to ask about it. She was content with where they were, despite constantly having that niggly sensation of forever wondering. She knew eventually she was going to ask him about it, but right now, to play it safe, she was just going to have to suffer the endless questioning of her place with him. She didn’t know where she was with him, but she knew that she was in the good side of it…?

_That makes no sense…_

Weeks went by, the spirit of Christmas coming down onto Des Moines as thick as the snow did. The air held a constant chill to which Sallie was used to. Work seemed more exciting too, with Christmas-themed outfits and toys coming in. Sallie had never laughed so hard at an elf-shape dildo before, and Corey had to hide the candy cane double-ended dildos in case Sallie had intentions of a Christmas-themed dildo sword fight.

And for a time, everything seemed fine. _Too fine…_

Despite her constant bickering of her question to Corey, she was content to be around him and _Slipknot_. Sallie finally managed to attend their Christmas special gig, to which they all wore Christmas hats and silly outfits. Mick had Christmas lights braided into his hair thanks to her, and the night was a success. Corey’s mask was still in the making, but that was okay. He was preparing one in the background, and wouldn’t tell anyone about it but Shawn, who seemed to vastly approve of it. Sallie was excited, and knew it was something to look forward to much later on…

And things were okay…

They _were_ until Christmas day…

* * *

Christmas was as exciting as any day. In Sallie’s eyes, Christmas was never the same after her Mother’s departure. She regarded it as numbly as a normal day, forced to buy careless presents for her disgraceful stepmother, and a present with thought behind it for her father. She never looked forward to what she got. It was always an insult from Sam, one-sided and cruel. A bully move.

And Sam took an extra step this year.

A bag of apples. Sallie was bemused by it at first, unsure what was the insult, but when Sam ‘helpfully’ interjected through her thoughts and stated that she needed to lose weight, Sallie’s hand gripped onto the bag harder, but nothing else. Since being with Corey, she found a reason to not let go and be a complete monster. Her father looked like he was losing life each day, seeing how this vampiric woman was draining life out of him and his daughter, and yet he refused to leave her and either find happiness within or with someone else that wasn’t a complete fucking monster.

Sallie locked herself up in her room after presents were exchanged, busily texting Corey and the others _Merry Christmas_ messages.

_I need to get more credit in a bit…_

Beside her was a present, neatly wrapped up with an adorable makeshift bow on it. She had tried to mimic the stylish, professional bow-tying and failed it miserably, but she was happy with the effort, and she knew Corey would have appreciated the present inside of it.

“ _Sallie!_ ” Her father called her, and Sallie grumbled, rolling her eyes. But from the heavenly cooked food downstairs, she only assumed it was dinner. Tucking her phone in her pocket, she made her way downstairs, approaching an empty table.

And at the other end of the table was Sam and her father, sat down, preparing for another interrogation. Sallie’s heart grew cold at the sight, knowing she had been deceived.

“Sit down, Sallie.” Her father offered, his hand indicating the empty seat before them. “We need to talk.”

“I’ll be okay here,” Sallie murmured, folding her arm and leaned against the doorframe.

“No, _sit!_ ” Sam snapped, her eyes furious, and for Sallie’s amusement, the little Brit refused to move. She only gave her stepmother a flat smile which clearly said: _I’m not fucking listening to you._

Her father gave Sallie a tired glare.

“Told you, love.” Sam muttered to her husband, her eyes never leaving Sallie, judging the little woman’s attire. She was still living in that ridiculous massive hoodie from her trampy friend, black jeans with the metal chains hanging from the pocket. Those dirty boots and that fucking stupid set of over-the-ear headphones hanging around her neck, the dumb present she got from her ‘friends’ at her birthday…

Sallie’s father cleared his throat before he began, and Sallie waited.

“Would you like to confess something to us before we start?”

“Like what?” Sallie shot back numbly, wondering what started this suddenly. She knew the peace would not have lasted so long.

Her father and Sam watched her carefully, waiting for any confession.

They received none.

“Okay,” Her father said through gritted teeth, frustrated. He faced Sam for a time, and then back at Sallie. “Where is your uniform?”

Sallie stared, her brows shifting ever so slightly.

“My uniform? In the wash.”

“No, I mean your _official_ uniform.” Her father reiterated. “ _Target_ has official uniforms, right?”

“Oh yeah,” Sallie replied. “We’re still waiting for it. I’m not the only one suffering.”

“Right…” Her father sighed, evidently getting angry. His hand went into his pocket and slammed something onto the dining table top.

It was Sallie’s name badge at _Lover’s Playground_ , and Sam watched in sick glee to see the daughter’s face blanch at the sight of it.

“I’ll ask you again, _Sallie Kitt Knight_.” Her father growled, his eyes looking so fiery now, and Sallie knew she was stepping on dangerous no-man-land. “Where is your uniform?”

This time, Sallie said nothing, knowing that the badge had blown her entire cover. But then again-

“Where the fuck did you get that?” Sallie asked, very slowly.

“ _I_ found it in your fucking room!” Sam shouted suddenly, sitting up straight.

“You went in my fucking room without my permission?!” Sallie shouldn’t be so surprised at this point, but the sheer audacity of the act itself… “Uh, fucking invasion of privacy, much?”

“Why did you lie to us, Sal?” Her father asked, his voice the calmest yet far deadlier than his wife. Unlike Sam, Sallie actually cared about her relationship with her father. The lash shred of her life…

Before Sallie could explain, Sam jumped at this opportunity.

“I even went to fucking _Target_ in the Mall and asked the _manager_ there where Sallie and this… _fucking_ Corey.” She shrugged, smiling in appalling joy, looking at Sallie frostily. “He said there were no Corey and Sallie there.” She waved a hand as if to iterate her meaning, and Sallie flinched at that dumb gesture of pleasure.

“I didn’t tell the truth because I was _scared_.” Sallie admitted, her features darkening.

“Corey told you, didn’t he?”

Her father’s statement wounded Sallie, and Sam watched at her work.

“N-No, Dad. Corey had never influenced me to lie!” Sallie’s heart was panicking now, begging for her father to take a liking in her best friend.

“What about that one time you ‘went to his’?” Sam interrogated with a nasty smile. “You went to that shitty nightclub, didn’t you? He told you to lie about that. I saw the text messages on your phone!” But Sallie ignored her, her focus on her father. That was all she cared about. Her father.

“Dad, Corey is a good guy! He’s been so wonderful to me-”

“I don’t want you to see Corey anymore.”

The world stopped.

_I don’t want you to see Corey anymore…I don’t want you to see Corey anymore…_

_I don’t want you to see Corey anymore…_


	30. All Hope Is Gone

__

__

_I don’t want you to see Corey anymore…_

“What?” Sallie managed to choke, the shock creating a dam in her throat, her expression paled with mute-horror.

“Corey is a bad influence on you,” Her father said, just as firm, without missing a beat. He folded his arms over his great chest. “Ever since you’ve been with him, you’ve changed.”

“N-No…he’s not…”

“Yes, he is.” Came the stern reply, his hard eyes not leaving his distraught daughter. “I don’t want you to see him anymore. Sam has proven her point enough.”

Sallie stumbled for a reply, the absolute fearlessness of the statement so stunning that she had no smart comeback, but even an honest remark would have been decent enough. But she was still trying to register the true meaning behind what he said.

_I don’t want you to see Corey anymore…_

“You can’t stop me…”

“Your attitude needs adjusting.” Her father spoke, not backing down, watching his daughter brittle under his hardness. “Corey had turned you into a monster.”

“A…a monster?” Sallie’s teeth pinched at the inside of her cheeks viciously. “You…you don’t fucking know him as I do.”

Her father’s eyes flared up slightly.

“Don’t you swear at me, young lady.”

“I can fucking swear as fucking much as I fucking want! I’m not a fucking baby anymore!”

“Well stop acting like one!” Sam shot back, now joining in the battle of brutalising this mess of a daughter.

“Stop acting like one?!” Sallie scoffed, laughing too loudly, almost hysterically. “This coming from a bitch that does nothing but fucking _bullies_ me, and _you’re_ telling me to not act like a high school brat! _Look_ at you!”

“Sallie-!”

Sallie turned to her father.

“And _you_ fucking let this happen! You fucking _watch_ it happen!” Her father watched her tilting her head to one side, and there was a glint in her shocking-white eyes that struck a worrying chord inside of him, like he was witnessing the birth of a psychopath. Sallie dropped her voice in a snarl. “Mum wouldn’t let this happen…”

“Maria is not _fucking here_ anymore!”

“She _is_ fucking here! In fucking spirit! And _you_ fucking eliminated her out of your life because your prick of a wife destroyed her out of you too!” Sallie was panting, her voiced fury taking control now, the shaking starting from her feet as she pointed at Sam. “She’s fucking making you miserable!”

“No, she does not!”

“Yes, she fucking is! I can see my own fucking dad _dead_ in your eyes!”

“Excuse me?!” Sam spat out hatefully, and Sallie waved her hands incredibly dramatically.

“Oh-ho! I’m sorry, Queen! Did I ruin your perfect streak!”

Sam’s eyes widened in fury, the wrinkles on her face stretched. But it was Sallie’s father who reacted first.

“How dare you! That’s my wife you’re talking to.”

Sallie spat a poisonous look at her father, and it crippled him with how much hatred laid in those eyes. He never really noticed them until she started to hang around with that damn Corey and… _Slipknot…_

“But she isn’t my _fucking_ mother. I wish _she_ fucking died!”

A shocking slam boomed from where her father smashed his fist on the table, making the cups chatter against the polished wooden surface.

“Would you stop saying shit like that! It’s not nice at all!”

“She’s not fucking nice!” Sallie snapped, pointing a finger at Sam who was now writhing in her own anger.

“ _She_ has a fucking name!” Came the nasal-toned reaction, and Sallie turned her eyes onto her, the pressure points of raw loathing in there, and it shot through her.

“Yeah, _Bitch_.”

Sallie noticed how Sam stood up, her arm poised, ready to slap her. But a sudden spark shot through Sallie, and unexpectedly, Sallie had found herself holding the skinny woman against the wall. The very same as she did with Jodie…

Sam’s eyes widened in terror as she was paralysed between the wall and the furious little woman. Sam stared down at Sallie, and realised something _awful_ then…

Sallie was in for the kill…

“ _Wait_!” Sam wailed helplessly, and instantly Sallie felt the vice grip of her father’s meaty hand at the back of her hoodie and she was snatched away from Sam, practically thrown her against the wall, his own stature towering and bulky compared to his daughter’s, and for a terrible second, Sallie thought he was going to hit her.

He had never hit her in her life. But this moment. This _very_ moment, she felt his urge so strong.

“Why Sallie? Why, why do you persist in _ruining my life?!_ ”

“Because you _ruined mine!_ ” Sallie screamed, hot tears stinging the back of her eyes now. “You’ve changed! You’re not the fucking Dad I knew! You _changed_!”

Her father lifted her away from the wall and hit her aggressively against it, shaking her arms hard.

“You live under _my_ roof! You _will_ respect me!”

“Respect is earned. Not fucking given!” Sallie shrieked back, now engaging in a screaming match with her father. “I do not like Sam. I fucking _hate_ her. She’s a fucking cunt that hurt me, and look at us now, we don’t even fucking _talk_ to each other anymore and we live in the same damn house! You are _not_ the man I know. My Dad is fucking _dead_ now!”

That seemed to have brought something down in the man’s eyes, a terrible sense of disgust, and Sallie knew there was no turning back. However-

“Corey.”

Sallie and her father looked to see Sam shaking her head in revulsion.

“What, love?” Her father asked, in which his horrible wife replied:

“Corey. Ever since your daughter has been hanging around with that weirdo, she’s become a right little cow. Everything has changed.”

Sallie’s brows furrowed, harshly.

“Fuck you. Corey’s my best friend. He just taught me how to fucking stand up against myself. He _knows_ all of the shitty abuse you’ve given me, so does my other friends!”

“He’s a freak.” Sam scoffed, looking away. “All he does is scream and wears a stupid costume with those so-called ‘friends’. Like he’s gonna make it to fame.”

“Corey is fucking passionate. He _will_ make it! You’re just jealous because you’re fucking ancient and look like a scrotum!” Sallie snorted, reflecting that beautiful insult she once said to Corey, pride in her tone.

Her father aggressively threw her towards the door, and Sallie would have laughed to add insult to injury, but-

“Get out!”

Sallie stared, hearing those words. Did he-

“Pack your stuff and fucking leave! I don’t ever want you to set foot in my house again!”

Sallie’s grin dropped, and a darkness masked over her face.

“See, Love? She even pulls his fucking horrible glares!” Sam shot back, a cruel smirk of triumph to see the daughter and father fighting, and, of course, the father was siding with her. Sallie opened her mouth.

“I-”

“Go fuck off, Sallie.” Sam hissed, waving her hand dismissively at her. “Go back with that Taylor guy and marry him or something. Have ugly babies with him.” She then looked at Sallie, ice in her eyes. “Oh wait, I forgot…” Then a cynical smirk ran across her hideous face. “You’re infertile.”

Her father, as always, stood there, allowing his daughter to get the verbal abuse. He could see Sallie was physically struggling.

“Even if I wasn’t infertile, I wouldn’t want fucking kids anyway.” Sallie snarled under her breath, her body trembling. “I wouldn’t want them to be in the same fucking world that is cursed with cunts like you. You fucking bitch!”

“I’m gonna ask you one more time, Sallie!” Her father finally interrupted, spinning around to her and pointing at the door. “Leave, or I’ll call the police.”

Sallie slowly looked at her father, and all respect was gone. All hope was gone. Everything, even her adoration for this man. Dead.

He killed it. He allowed his little girl to get killed.

“Goodbye.” Came the cold reply, and with that, she spun on her boots and began to storm towards the front door. Her mind blank, not regarding to pack anything else but the clothes she wore on her back, her phone and wallet. She opened the front door and slammed it hard behind her. So hard, the glass in the little windowpane shattered. But Sallie’s mind was steamrolling, she didn’t register what she had done until she started walking.

The walk turned into a brisk pace, her boots crunching through the snow, and quickly she turned off the path and ran down the thick whiteness of the forestry behind the house, vanishing from plain sight.

That was when she began screaming, screaming at the sky, head tilted back to the grey clouds. Her eyes blurred, and she almost ran into the trunk of a tree, tripping onto its bulking roots beneath the snow and fell into the thick snow, her entire body seized with the terrible chill.

She laid there, allowing the harsh winter to take her.

Sallie stared at the dead branches above her, the sky startingly white, too harshly white to her eyes. It wouldn’t fucking matter anyway.

Her father practically wanted her dead. No one cared about her enough if she were to-

Suddenly, she got up from the snow, regaining her body warmth again, covering her face with her hands and her knee began to bounce aggressively.

_No…no, mum wouldn’t want that. She would want me to be strong…she…_

Slowly, Sallie pulled out her phone, and thought for a time.

She dialled a number and pressed it against her ear, listening.

This would be the last phone call she’d make in a very long time.

_“Call cannot be made. Please try again.”_

The signal that she had no credit left.

_Fuck!_

She shoved the phone into her pocket and rubbed her hands together, her fingers icily cold and she tucked them under her armpits in a pitiful attempt of warming them up.

_Corey…I need to go to Corey’s place…everyone else is too far away…_

Crying, Sallie hurried through the shortcut towards the city, ambling along the icy paths and fell several times, each fall causing a part of her body to be crushed against her body and bruising her bones. The streets were empty, as expected, for it was Christmas after all…

_Fuck Christmas…I hate it…_

_Mum loved it so much…_

Sallie stared at the concrete ice as she recalled the vivid memory of her mother walking towards the dining room, a variety of freshly-cooked foods, Yorkshire puddings and perfect gravy, with juicy chicken and there was _always_ room for her homemade trifle…

Trembling, Sallie gradually got back up again, her knees shaking, everything was hurting.

_Corey…Corey…_

She decided it was best to walk on the road, as there was less ice on there. Her legs weak and terribly cold, she stumbled through _Pappajohn Sculpture Park,_ hiding her face with the massive hood from a man walking his dog, and eventually Sallie made it at _Hubble Apartment_.

Her frozen finger pushed onto the buzzer, and she felt her strength leaving her, making her spam the buzzer several times as she was unable to hold it down at a reasonable length.

A very grumpy voice spoke through the speaker.

“Yeah, the fuck was that about?”

“Corey?”

“Sal?! What are you-?!”

“Let me in…p-please…it’s cold…”

Corey hung up immediately, and by the time her best friend reached downstairs, he found the distressed woman curled up on the floor, her knees and elbows bleeding as she wept in the snow.


	31. Skin Ticket

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains a small sex-scene.  
> \+ Lewd Teasing  
> +Lewd Thoughts

“Sallie!” Corey cried out, grabbing Sallie from the floor and pulling her into a hard, tight hug. She was freezing to the touch. “What the fuck are you doing out here? It’s fucking freezing as fuck out here, and it’s Christmas-!”

“I wanna…see you…”

Corey frowned, feeling that lie and pulled her away from his chest for a moment, his powerful-blue eyes focusing on her. She wasn’t even _trying_ to hide her lie.

“Something happened.”

His best friend stared at him with such tearful eyes, and the very sight crippled him. He yanked her back into his arms, using his body to warm her back up, his fingers digging hard into her soft body. “It’s okay, it’s okay babe…” He whispered, hushing her hair as he felt her weep against him, her small, shaking hands pressed against his chest and gripped onto his shirt hard. “I’ve got you…I’ve got you…”

“I like it when you call me babe…” Came the small drawl, her freezing face pressed against the warmth of his neck. “It makes me feel…wanted…”

“You _are_ wanted, Sal.” Corey whispered, feeling her shiver and he pulled her back inside, away from the chills. Tucking themselves into the corner of the lobby, Corey looked down, his arms never releasing her. “What happened?”

“I…got into an argument with my dad and Satan…”

_And kicked me out of my own home…_

Sallie just couldn’t seem to tell him _that_.

Corey frowned sadly, nodding in understanding.

“Yeah, I figured.” He shook his head, tutting. “On fucking Christmas day, too.”

“I’m surprised you’re here.” Sallie replied, wiping her tearful eyes with the sleeve of his hoodie. “I thought you’d be with Shawn.”

“Shawn’s with family.” Corey stated bluntly. And when Sallie’s eyes lifted back to him, he knew what she was asking. “I…don’t have anyone around here anymore.”

“You have me.” Sallie whispered, smiling weakly. Corey stared down at her eyes, seeing them tint with red from the excessive crying she must have done along the way. Such stunning bright blue eyes. It hurt him to see them looking so ruined. His hand cupped her cheek, stroking the cold path of tear off it with his thumb.

“Yeah, I _do_ have you…” He whispered back, reflecting her smile. “You can stay for tonight. You know you don’t need to ask.” Pulling her into a hard hug, he clung onto her, wanting to squeeze out all of the pain. “I…don’t have anything amazing back at home. I don’t even have a tree-”

“I don’t care. I’ve got you.” Sallie insisted, clutching onto him neck and pulling him down. Corey had to admit, he _loved_ her hugs. They always felt so strong and passionate, a hug that seemed to always make everyone feel better. He didn’t know how or why, but they always made _him_ feel better. They made him feel _wanted…_

“Good. I’ve got fuck all.”

“I’m okay with that.”

“No, I mean I’ve got _fuck all_ food. We need to go to the store.”

“On Christmas?”

“Pfft!” Corey snorted, waving his hand at her. “There’s a little shop around the corner. Let’s go there.” Slowly, he reached down for her small hands and cupped them into his, warming them up with his own heat. “After we pick a few things up, we can relax back at mine, okay?”

Sallie nodded.

“You always make me feel better, Corey.”

That made Corey smile.

* * *

They didn’t get much. There was enough food and drink to last them a while. With the state Sallie was in, Corey wasn’t expecting her to return home anytime soon. But that was okay, he could use the company. He was starting to feel the demons coming back to him…

When they returned to the apartment, Sallie wasn’t crying anymore. She had calmed down tremendously, feeling a little better now that had someone to talk to that wasn’t her own poisonous thoughts.

The elevator was broken, of course, and Sallie was trying not to sound like she was dying out of breath. She followed Corey up the stairs, watching him walk up so easily, carrying two bags of shopping that he utterly refused Sallie to handle.

Corey kept looking back, making sure she was okay. And he grinned playfully.

"You know, I get that I do this every day, but damn Sallie," Corey chuckled. "I smoke, what's your excuse?" He halted, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it, letting her have a little break. The bags of shopping hung over his arms.

Sallie looked up, glaring at him. Jokingly.

"I've got extra weight. Boobs and a fat arse, shut it." She managed to joke and giggled softly, the old Sallie coming back to her, the previous black mood fading now. Corey always made her feel better.

"Oh, right, right. So sorry your majesty." Corey smirked, waving his hand with a chuckle. "I can give you a piggy-back ride the rest of the way." He said, taking a long drag from his cigarette.

"Just another excuse to touch my legs, huh?" Sallie chuckled too, this time it felt more genuine. There was a joke between her and Corey about touching legs. When Sallie was shadowing Corey during her first day at work, due to their heights, her hand would occasionally, and accidently, brush against Corey's leg. It was an innocent mistake, but when it got to the point it happened almost every day, Corey would do the same. Sometimes slap her knee softly or pinch the back of her knee.

This banter was what she looked forward to when she went to work.

Corey blew air past his lips, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, yeah, can't get enough of those turkey thighs." He smiled, finishing up his cigarette and putting it out on the bottom of his boot, putting the butt in his pocket. His best friend halted at the comment, her face painted in mock-shock.

" _Turkey thighs?!_ " Sallie exclaimed, now storming up the stairs towards him. "I'll have you know mister; these thighs can crush and _kill!_ "

She huffed, hurrying up the stairs, storming past him to prove him wrong. Corey smirked knowingly, watching the little Brit storm up the last few sets of stairs, watching her small body move. It was cutely mesmerising.

Corey chased after her.

Sallie was exhausted by the time she reached the top. With a loud groan, she tilted her head back and leaned forward slightly, her hands on her knees. "Fuck me!" She moaned in exhaustion. "That was shit!" When Corey reached her, he was panting lightly, and he saw her slightly hunched over.

"Hm, you know, you look good with your mouth hanging open and moaning like that." He grinned. Sallie only gave him a glare before he smacked her ass, running down the hall to his apartment door before Sallie could react.

A shockwave of arousal struck her, her hand grabbing her assaulted asscheek, but she quickly ignored the arousal that flourished.

"Oh! Oi!" She smirked, holding her hand up. "My turn now, get here!" She ran after him down the hallway and saw him frantically trying to open his door.

She struck her hand across his ass. " _Bam!_ "

Corey jumped and glared at her.

"Hey! No fair." He yelped. He then calmed down and nudged her, sharing a playful smirk with her. He loved this side of her, when she was silly and playful. It was the best Sallie. Unlocking the door, he opened the door and flipped on a switch that gave a little bit of light in the apartment.

Walking in, he tossed his keys on a small table. "Uh, sorry for the mess…again." He said softly as he quickly rushed to pick up some bottles and razor blades. Sallie’s eyes fixated on the razor blades, a little stunned at their sudden appearance. Razor blades-

Corey snatched it away from her line of sight before she could even register what it was.

Folding her arms, Sallie watched Corey frantically tidy, knowing that she wasn't impressed so far.

He felt the glaring stare holding him. And he tossed what he had in his arms in the trash bin, avoiding her eyes. "I... uh... wasn't expecting.... you..." He said, acting like a nervous teenager. He faced her, not liking the silence.

“What’s…with the blades?” Sallie murmured.

“I was changing my razor and cut myself.”

Sallie blinked slowly.

That was a warning.

She then began to make her way to the sofa and sat on it, shyly, hands on her knees.

He watched her for a time, trying to change the subject. "Uh, coffee?" He asked, walking to the kitchen and began getting everything ready. The dreadlocked male looked in the refrigerator and a rotting smell emerged from it, causing him to lurched back. "Hm... didn't think everything was _that_ old..." He whispered to himself. He pulled out the carton of milk and opened it, smelling it and recoiled. "Looks like I need to go to the store again to get bastard milk..." He snickered.

Sallie perked up, her big blue eyes looking back at Corey.

"It's okay, we can go back in a bit. I just wanna..." She leaned back into the sofa, closing her eyes. "...chill for a moment."

From the kitchen, Corey looked over his shoulder and watched her lie there.

She was so peaceful, almost too fragile for him to touch, and it somewhat scared him. So cute…

Corey placed the curdled milk down on the counter and didn't even bother closing the fridge door.

_Why bother?_

He returned to the sofa, standing next to her, watching her longer. Then, slowly, he leaned down and caressed her face, his worn hand rubbing her cool cheeks. "You look so tired. If you need to sleep, you can." He said almost sadly, kissing her forehead softly.

_I haven't slept in so long... was it really showing now?_

"What's this?" Sallie smiled delicately at the kiss. "First you spank my arse than you kiss me. You trying to woo me or something?" She giggled, teasingly. Corey smirked lightly.

“Oh, sure, trying to woo you, babe…”

Sallie slowly relaxed her head on the armrest.

"I'm not tired, just drained..."

Corey often found Sallie’s persistent nature rather endearing, but even he knew she was pushing her body’s limit. Yet he was smiling back at her, tiredly.

"Hey, I know when someone is tired, and you are tired." He then went to his room and grabbed his bedsheet, returning to the sofa and draped it over her, allowing the heaviness of it to hold her down in a comforting cover.

Corey kissed her forehead again, smiling as Sallie mewed tenderly at it, shuffling under the blanket and rested on it. Satisfied that she was okay, he walked back to the kitchen and closed the fridge door, glaring at the milk carton and tossed it in the trash. When that was done, Corey spun around and leaned his back against the counter, watching her.

"I'm not sleepy." Sallie drawled insistently, pulling the blanket against her body, however. "We need to go to Walmart." Her eyes squinted.

"Walmart is shut on Christmas, you dumbass." Corey said quietly, his tone compassionate. "Just relax babe, and just rest." He pulled out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it, smoking it deeply. His eyes were still watching her.

What was this feeling he was having toward her...?

"I'm not tired." She insisted, shutting her eyes. The warmth of the blanket was soothing, keeping her body warm now. She didn't realise how cold she was until now. And she was starting to feel normal... "I wish Mum was still here...life seemed to have died with her."

Corey’s expression dampened, hearing the heartache in her comment. This argument seemed far worse than any other ones she had. "I know, babe... but..." He slowly walked towards the sofa. “She's always with you, in a way..." He took a few more drags of his cigarette, walking behind the sofa and placed his hand on her back, rubbing it gently, avoiding the smoke going near her. "I am sure she is very proud of you, babe. Proud of us for being best friends.”

"I'm just..." She opened her eyes. She hated how she had time to think. It gave her an excuse to recycle back more painful thoughts. Only this time, she had Corey... "I miss her..."

A long, pained sigh left Corey, and he looked at his cigarette for a time. He decided to discard it, rubbing it into the wall and dropping it on the floor, walking back to the sofa and grabbed her gently, pulling Sallie up so that he sat down on the sofa with her, pulling her into his arms. Eagerly, Sallie shuffled and rested herself onto Corey, her blanketed head on his chest, and she curled up. In a small tight ball. She was _frightened_.

Pained by this, Corey held her close, leaning back into the sofa.

"It's okay..." He rubbed her shoulder gently, comforting her. He understood loss, but... Sallie was hurting.

"Dad was never the same...since Mum died…what you saw...he was _always_ like that...but it wasn’t an act. It was _him_ …" Her voice was small, timid. As if she was losing strength. "You would have liked him..."

He frowned, that was probably true, but Corey didn't dwell on how a person was in the past... but how that person was in the present. He took in a deep breath, tilting his head back and looking at the ceiling. “He was so lovely…so funny. Everyone liked him, and I was so proud of having a dad like him…” The faint memory of her perfect life faded.

Corey felt her getting closer and closer. He looked to her, his hand resting on her shoulder.

"That happens to a lot of people when they lose the person they love most." He said, his voice saddened.

"I wonder...where I went...wrong..."

Corey watched her, his heart sinking for her, but he didn't know what else to say. He then looked to the ceiling again. Corey had a solution to all his problems, but he knew how straight-edged Sallie was... so that solution was off the table....

Besides, he didn’t know if Sallie would have approved of such a method.

Sallie's head dropped, dipping between Corey's thighs and against his groin, her nose stuffing against it. Corey almost flinched, his eyes looking down to her... and he watched her. He strangely didn't feel uncomfortable about this. Her breathing was deep, calm...sleep induced.

_She needs your comfort Corey, just let her bury her face in your balls._

He tried to convince himself this wasn't sexual, or Sallie wasn't making a move on him... right...?

Sallie shifted then after a moment, rolling so that she was lying completely over the sofa, her little boots hanging off the armrest, and her face was curled up against his lower stomach, her hands tucked against her face like a kitten.

She was truly asleep now.

Corey watched her.

_Heh... she's adorable... wonder... no... she's my friend...._

His eyes scanned her; his hand run along her upper arm compassionately, not wanting to wake her.

Her lips pouted, slowly drawing and opened slightly, her lower lip thicker than the top. Untouched. Unwanted. It was even worse now. She began to snore lightly. She hadn't slept like this in a long time, her body heavy and dead-weight now.

Corey tilted his head to the side. He moved a strand of hair from her face, and he didn't want to leave her…

He smiled tenderly when he finally decided to stay, and tilted his head back, looking to the ceiling and he pulled a cigarette out and lit it, smoking one more cigarette before he closed his eyes. He had been smoking vastly more for a few weeks now, the habit becoming harder and harder to break. But that was only because the demons were getting worse and worse, and ever since that mask…

His eyes gazed at his bedroom for a moment…

He stared at it for a long time, knowing what was _in_ there…

But Corey was so tired, and Sallie was only making him drowsier....

He then took a few final puffs on his cigarette and pushed it against the inside of an old mug, setting it next to him. He then closed his eyes, and the two of them were asleep....

* * *

Sallie woke up with the sensation of feeling _okay_ , the deep sleep numbing the heartache for now. The hate and the sorrow didn't creep up on her, _yet_.

She found her face buried in Corey's stomach; her nose trapped in his clothes.

Slowly, she stirred, the urgency in needing to pee was there. Through blurry, heavy eyes, she looked up at Corey.

Corey was already awake, he didn't sleep much, but he felt much better than earlier. He felt Sallie stirring and looked down, a smile on his face.

"Hey babe." He said, running his hand over her face gently, sleepily.

She tilted her head back, eyes closed peacefully, as he ran his hand through her face, nuzzling against his stroking, and she yawned, opening her mouth for a while at him. Almost like she wanted to-

He intensely watched her yawn... it was so inviting.... but then-

She finished yawning.

"Hey..."

"Thought you said you didn't need sleep." He teased kindly, stroking her hair.

"I didn't sleep, I snoozed." She reflected with a small grin, slowly rising from his lap, and the blanket fell over her, revealing her slightly messy hair. She tilted her head down, closing her eyes and tried to wake up. "Mmm.." She moaned softly.

"Snoozed, sure."

Corey slowly stood up and stretched himself.

"I need a pee,” Sallie stated gently, standing up slowly. Her blood rushed to her skull and she felt dizzy for a second. She stumbled towards the bathroom and closed the door.

Corey had returned to the kitchen and opened the fridge again, clearing it out. He hadn’t eaten in a while according to the state of the food. Some of it was brand new... but when he looked at the date... it was 3 weeks ago. Had he really not eaten for that long?

His eyes fell onto his body. He looked well-fed... no bones showing. The guys probably helped him out...

Speaking of....

He finished throwing the bad food out and pulled his phone out of his pocket, looking through the 25 messages. They were busy today. They were all asking how he was and wishing him a _Merry_ _Christmas_. He even had some missed calls. He sighed, dialling Shawn's number.

"Corey, where the fuck have you been?” Shawn answered immediately. “Hopefully not in another fucking dumpster.”

"Hey, Clown. Nice to talk to you too. I'm fine, just been sleeping finally." Corey got another cigarette ready.

“Okay, well, you know we are here for you, just wanted to make sure you were fine."

"Yeah, I'm good. Just... Sallie had a problem; she's staying over with me tonight."

“Oh, really now?"

Corey frowned deeply.

"C'mon Clown, you know she doesn't like me like that. How could she? I'm a fucking train-wreck."

“Jesus fuck Corey, just fuck her already."

"Fuck you, _dad_."

Laughter. That made Corey smile faintly. It was a nice noise he hadn’t heard for a while.

"Well, you better not drink, or fucking do any drugs around her, we all know-"

"Don't have to tell me twice, I know. And I won't... I'll talk to you later."

Grumbling, Corey hung the phone up and finished his cigarette. He needed a fucking drink after that shit-fest in the morning. Unfortunately, he didn't have anything. No beer.

At that point, Sallie finally approached him in the kitchen, looking a little more alive.

"Hey...you wanna go get the milk before they shut?”

Corey smiled, looking at his adorable friend up and down.

"Sure." He said gently. " Let me go put on a clean shirt." He walked past her, brushing his hand against her thigh. Her thigh muscle almost twitched with excitement at the contact.

" _Hey_!" She piped up naughtily, seeing what he did there. Corey flashed a cheeky grin, knowingly before he returned to his bedroom. He walked to the closet and began sifting through his clothes, pulling out a black button-up shirt and slipped it on. Promptly, he buttoned it up and rolled the sleeves up a bit.

"Okay ready." He said, looking to Sallie. When he was ready, she nodded too, signalling that she was ready too.

* * *

Corey didn't buy any alcohol for once, but he knew he needed something. He was getting antsy now. But he was smoking like a chimney, so he bought a ton more packs of cigarettes.

As they finally returned to the apartment, they placed everything on the kitchen counter. He began putting things away as he had another cigarette in his mouth.

"Sorry I'm smoking so much... just... it calms me down, babe...." He said as he looked to her, his eyes pleading for forgiveness. Somehow, his best friend’s opinions meant everything to him now.

"You should quit smoking." Sallie said with a soft frown, evidently not enjoying the thick smoke around her. "It's killing you." She was ambling along, trying to help Corey put stuff away too.

"Killing me?" He waved a hand with a snort. "This _isn't_ killing me. Not fucking masturbating is killing me!" He laughed, almost forcefully. Sallie gave him a small smile, one that didn’t seem so sure with that… But that was okay. He liked seeing her smile and laugh, regardless.

They finally finished putting the food away, and coffees were finally brewed. From the desperate look of Sallie, she needed one so badly. She even licked her lips like a starved cat staring at cooked food.

_That look makes me uncomfortable..._

Ignoring that thought, Corey leaned against the counter. "Now, I am a good cook, if I say so myself, so, anything you fancy, babe?" He asked as Sallie reached for her coffee and chug it urgently, her tiny body trembling.

"I'm content with anything. Surprise me."

“Alrighty,” Corey replied calmly, pulling out some hamburgers and some bread. As he did this, Sallie turned on the heels of her boots and walked to the sofa, but then stopped.

"Aw fuck!”

Corey looked up suddenly.

“Hm?”

“I didn't get any PJs."

"Oh, I have some extra clothes in the room, third dresser drawer."

"So long they don't have cum-stains on them, you'll live to see the morning." Sallie grinned, feeling more like herself again.

He chuckled and waved his hand to her.

And with that, Sallie walked towards the bedroom, approaching the dresser drawer and pulled out some shorts and a tank-top. It had AC-DC on it.

_That’ll do!_

Closing it, she turned to leave-

She halted, and slowly looked back over her shoulder, seeing something that she didn’t recognise before. That was when she fully turned around, clutching onto the clothes against her.

Before her, on the boarded windowsill, she noticed _something_ , something that startled her for a time, but she found herself curious, hypnotised.

Gently placing the clothes on the bed, she stepped towards the windowsill and stared at it.

_Touch it…_

She didn’t understand it, but the compulsive urge to grab it held her, and she took it calmly in her hand.

Lifting it...it was heavy, dense, almost wet.

Sallie stared at it longer, her eyes gorging on the details, stuck in a haunted enchantment with this thing…

A latex mask, thick ropes of dirty fake-dreadlocks rolled over her arm, raspy tendrils. Her brilliant blue eyes gazed at the gaping eyeholes and the mouth, spellbound. Delicately, she ran her fingers over the seams, fingering at the stitches and staples.

This looked like a Halloween mask, one she had never seen before. It was nothing like the horror movies she had seen.

_Is this…Corey’s new mask?_

It was certainly disturbing, rather terrifying and yet she found it almost unbearably hard to put away. The strong whiff of latex engulfed her. She adored how evocative this looked, how blank the dark tone of the mask was, and yet its expression held more meaning towards her.

_It’s like a personification of Corey’s inner-self…_

She _felt_ herself in that. She ran her thumb over it again to examined it closer, twirling with the dreadlocks and fitted her hand inside of the mask...

_Wear it._

_Don't be gross. It's not yours._

_But he-_

Despite Sallie's acidic thought, she felt herself ignoring her inner voice, and she opened the mask, slowly shoving it over her head, and it fitted her almost perfectly. The latex of the mask pulled at her hair, flattening it against her skull. It stunk of rubber, sweat and iron...

She peered through the eyeholes, hearing her deep panting beneath the mask, feeling hot already. Her own life coming out all around her, making her so painfully conscious of herself. Slow, deep breaths...

The dreadlocks hung over her eyes, and she turned to the small cracked mirror, looking at herself. One hand pressed against the cheek of the mask, cupping her own face with one hand, the other ran up her skull, fingers between the thick bases of the dreadlocks, caressing herself. She didn't understand it, but she was feeling a little... _weird..._

The little Brit remained there, almost posed lewdly as she ran her hands over the mask, her little finger inside her mouth hole, touching her own lips beneath the voids. She was remembering the movie, _Halloween_ , how the masked Michael Myers seemed to have bothered her in ways no one else seemed to share. And it wasn’t as if she was attracted to the villain, there was just something about the mystery she felt so…

_I look so different…This face…this mask feels so…_

She felt compelled in removing her clothes...

Corey was cooking hamburgers for them, his mind distracted. Getting the frying pan out, he shaped the patties and began frying them. He was going to cook them the way he liked them, well-done. It took a bit of time, and he seasoned the meat with a little bit of salt and pepper. He then finished them up and put them on the bread. They didn't have anything to put on the burgers, but that was okay. Food was food for them both, and they both needed it.

"Dinner's ready, babe." He called out, getting two bottles of water for them. He then sat on the sofa and placed her plate next to him, and he began to scoff down his burger. He hadn't had food.... in... so... long.....

Sallie was in the middle of getting dressed... she was taking her sweet time.

She had managed to put the tank-top on, but she stood in the dark room, her pants on the floor, her panties on, and a hand was pressing against her lower stomach, inching closer and closer to her pussy. The mask was still on her head, and she was watching the dreadlocks sway as if captivating her, imagining it staring back at her. Imagining that it was _Corey…_

She didn't understand it. It spoke to her at a level so deep she was so terrified to even register it.

Her index finger pushed at her clit over her panties. Her shoulders drew up. She felt so sensitive, it was almost painful for her to touch it. How long has it been since she had ever given herself such self-care...she was frightened. The last time she remembered was almost a whole month ago, and that was when Corey last touched her.

_You still don’t know where you stand with him, don’t you-_

_Shut it. I’m falling in love…_

Sallie tilted her head, the dreadlocks rolling off her shoulders as she watched her mirror-image.

_Jesus Christ, how fascinating…I want him to touch me._

A hand grabbed onto her breast, imagining it to be her masked stalker. And beneath the mask, she smiled faintly. Her fingers weaved through the dreadlocks, so alluringly, so seductively. She felt sexy staring back-

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Came the calm voice of Corey.


	32. IOWA

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains a MASSIVE sex-scene.  
> \+ Full-Blown Sex (Fucking finally, I blue-balled you all sorry!)  
> \+ Foreplay (Oral, handjob)  
> \+ Dark intentions  
> \+ The mention of rape  
> \+ Dark DARK inner-thoughts of IOWA

" _FUCK!_ " Sallie screamed suddenly when Corey spoke, practically ripping the mask off her head and throwing it onto his bed as if burnt, before she scurried to the corner of the room in nothing but his tank-top and her panties. "It-I-got lost and couldn't find the escape key!" Her eyes huge with horror, as if she had been caught killing someone.

She only just realised she was wearing no pants, and she scrunched her legs together, her hands covering her groin.

Corey stared at her for a long, daunting moment, his eyebrows furrowed in slight anger. Gradually, his eyes shifted, looking to his mask and then to her again.

"Why were you wearing my mask?" He asked, menacingly calm. Sallie watched as Corey approached the bed, snatching the mask up, holding it in his hands as he ran his fingers over the hard work he put into the mask.

He then darkly looked to her, wanting an answer. "Why were you wearing it?"

"I don't know! I just got-!" Sallie looked away, shaking hard. She could feel the fury just growing in his voice, despite being calm. It was more frightening, and Sallie was getting awful flashbacks of when Corey had yelled at her. And what really concerned her was that she _knew_ Corey was going downhill with his mental health. The last few weeks he seemed to be growing far darker than usual, holding an air of a deadly hatred Sallie did not fully comprehend. "I saw it...and it just…mesmerised me. I don't know, I like the way it looks...it's..."

_Don't fucking say it! He'll hate you!_

He narrowed his eyes, his brows furrowing harder.

"It's _what?_ " He grilled; his voice had a bite to it. Sallie shook in the corner, her mind racing and giving her no answers for the situation she had gotten herself into it. Caressing the dreadlocks in his bruised fingers, Corey turned and walked to the door, paused, and faced her, standing intimidatingly, blocking her only exit. There was, of course, the window, but he knew she wouldn’t even try that. Sallie had more sense than he did.

He was staying calm, but she heard it in his voice that he was getting angry.

"I... _like_ it, a lot...it's just..."

_Don't say it don't say it don't say it don't say it don't-_

"It's..." She recoiled, forcing her eyes to finally look away. "It's stupid, you're gonna hate me for it. I can't..."

Corey studied his best friend, feeling somewhat betrayed that she had touched his possession, a gift to the world that she was clearly not ready for…

Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath, and he opened his eyes again. The tension only thickened.

"Sallie, if I haven't hated you by now because of all the stupid shit we’ve been through... I'm not going to hate you." He said as evenly as he could, but his anger was peaking. He was struggling to hold it in. His fingers clenched around the dreadlock hard. He loomed in the doorway, his eyes looking strikingly sharp in the darkness. Corey was already strung out, and he could feel the symptoms of withdrawals hitting him. His fingers played with his mask, but because he didn't want to ruin the mask, he was being careful. It made him a bit more aware of what he was doing... but his hands were trembling.

Sallie shook hard, her eyes avoiding Corey. His eyes were cruel onto her, and Sallie was convinced that he was going to hit her.

She murmured something, oh so softly.

His eyes stared, unmoved.

"Sallie...." he warned once more, drawing the syllables of her name out with intent. He watched the little woman blink again, looking so tiny, looking so adorably _vulnerable…_

A wicked streak ran through Corey, realising how naturally small she was compared to him, and how he could easily have all of her. He had power…

"Its..." Sallie shut her eyes tightly, holding her hands up as if to prevent her from being harmed. "It’s _sexy_..." That was far harder than she realised, her throat clenched up. She absolutely refused to look at Corey’s reaction. He didn’t react, and that only made it worse…"I don't know _why_..." She added, frustration and fear lacing her tone. "I'm fucking weird, but I like it _a lot_. It's attractive to me, it's _sexy_ , and when I wore it...I felt things...I never felt... _before_..."

Turning her body away from him slightly, both hands cupped her groin, she added in a tiny, weak voice: "I haven't felt aroused like this before..."

Her best friend listened. He listened _very_ carefully, and what she said…he _understood_ …

Corey looked to his mask, his fingers delicately tracing the latex and stitches. His eyes then slowly slid up, looking at her frighteningly.

"You find it sexy?" He repeated. He wasn't disgusted or put off to it. He had to admit, he thought it was pretty hot himself, and he would find himself cutting himself in front of the mirror, pleasing himself…

“Y-Yes…” His best friend whimpered, still struggling to come to terms with this new feeling. “R-remember when we watched _Halloween_ on my birthday? I was imagining that as you and me…I just…” Her eyes remained to the floor, looking at her small naked feet. “Corey, I find you so…damn _attractive_ …and when we…did things that night,” Sallie forced herself to look at him, shaking visibly now. “I really wanted more…I never felt this about someone before, and I wanted so much more…but I was scared of ever mentioning it because I didn’t know where I stand, and I was scared of _losing_ you!” Tears twinkled at the corner of her eyes. “I fantasize about you so much, I have never felt so sexy…so wanted by another human, and when you and I…played that night, the world seemed more better…” She bit her lower lip, shuddering uncontrollably now. “P-Please don’t hate me…” She nodded to the mask he held, the fake, long dreadlocks swaying slightly in his shaking hands. “I saw that mask and _fell in love_ with it. It made me think of you and me, on how close we are and how we share the same level that no one else seem to quite understand…” She shut her eyes hard. “We two feel so alone, but…I feel more human when I’m with you…”

Corey only stared at Sallie numbly, taking all her confession. And when he didn’t reply, Sallie felt an awful spark of horror rising in her, and it took control. “P-Please! I’m sorry! I’m fucking stupid and I shouldn’t have-!”

“Stay here.” Corey ordered, his voice held an edge to it, and he turned away, closing the door behind him and leaving Sallie in the darkness of his room.

_What…why stay here…? Did I fuck it up?_

Pressed against the corner of the room, Sallie collapsed onto the floor, sliding her back down the wall and she covered her mouth with quivering hands.

_Fuck…fuck, he’s going to rage-quit and leave me, just like every other fucker!_

Sallie whimpered tightly, trying so very hard to hold back the tears of dread that threatened her, alone in the dark, destructive bedroom of her best friend.

_He’s going to disown me…they all have…_

It was a moment too long for Sallie’s comfort, and she stared at the door, waiting for Corey. Still nothing. She was trying to listen out for his footsteps, the creaking of the floorboards and the heavy footfalls of his boots. She heard it faintly, almost pacing around, and she couldn’t determine what he was doing.

Sallie went to stand up, but an urge pulled her down, holding her still, not wanting to antagonise the already-seething Corey. He had been doing something in the background that Sallie couldn’t quite understand. He was far more edgy than usual, and whenever she was around, she noticed his frustration peaking quicker. She had caught Corey looking through his phone back at the photos of him and Jodie, and Sallie only assumed that he was missing that wench.

Suddenly, she realised that there was someone standing by the door, and her heart seized when she heard the door open, looking up to see a stranger standing against the dim light, silhouetted. Promptly, she registered the jumpsuit that _Slipknot_ wore. This time, it was black, marked with symbols she remembered Joey showing her a while ago, logos of their band. There was a tribal _S_ that ran down his arm, and on the other was the number _8_. The jumpsuit looked so musty, so raw and earthly. Nothing like those fashion-designed suits Des Moines men were expected to wear. This really grasped the ambience of _Corey Taylor_.

Now, this time, the figure wore the mask that Sallie was enchanted with, the dreadlocks rolling down his shoulders and back. It seemed that he had painted his face black too, as beneath the mouth and eye voids was nothing but black, his eyes standing out in the inky-black cavities. It made his melancholy eyes stunning, standing out so magnificently.

Sallie was stunned, staring up at the figure. She knew it was Corey for a fact underneath all of that, but as she scrambled up onto her feet, she hugged herself, feeling her heart fluttering in her chest like a little bird wanting to escape the cage.

“Fuck…” Sallie managed to choke.

Corey tilted his head to the side, the dreadlocks rolling down him gracefully. He seemed confused with her reaction, though it wasn’t one of disgust. She was genuinely taken back.

“I wanted to show you this outfit during a show...." Corey murmured, his voice becoming darker, as if there was a personality shift. "But considering you _found_ out, I guess I should show you.” His lips glistened in the everlasting darkness around them, his stained teeth seemingly striking white against the black.

The masked singer watched her closely, not moving. Something about the mask made him feel better, like no drugs and alcohol was needed when he wore the mask. He didn't need that shit for the mask.

Sallie watched back, her eyes progressively drinking in the details of his outfit. Butterflies were no longer there, but crows thrashed inside of her chest. A strange dark excitement...she hadn't felt like this since the _Halloween_ movie.

But right now, Corey stood there with the mask on, looming before her like a predator. Instincts told her to be terrified, just like how they portrayed in those horror movies, but she found herself falling elsewhere, a pit no one else fell to...

She felt so alone...

Her eyes watched him in mute-horror, her arms clutching against herself, hugging herself, but she didn't scream, or run, or tried anything. Instead...

"Corey, you look amazing.”

He didn’t smile, but she knew he appreciated her comment.

“Inspired by all of my demons,” Corey replied lowly.

“Can I…” Sallie took a step towards him but hesitated and backed away. Corey tilted his head to the other side, scrutinizing her reaction like a curious demon of the underworld.

“Can you what, babe?”

“I wanna…”

_Touch you…_

Her body was already flourishing with a horrific fire, consuming her intelligence and make her wildly exhorting herself to touch him.

Gradually, she took one step. A warning step in what she wanted. Words no longer described what she truly wanted to do with Corey.

Corey didn’t move, watching her silently as his little friend took another step, both hands holding up. He knew what she wanted.

Sallie knew, deep down, how staggeringly wrong this was to feel about her best friend, and even more so that he was dressed up for his band. But something told her to just accept it. Just to enjoy what she had presented before her. Corey wasn’t backing away, so perhaps he felt the same.

Though Sallie was astonishingly attracted to him and had made it more than obvious that she liked Corey more than a friend. But now that he wore that mask, dressed in black, confounding like a stalker-

Immediately, Sallie stood before Corey, her small fingers curled into her palms, balling as if to resist herself.

“I wanna…touch you…” She managed to whisper, almost inaudibly.

Rapidly, Corey grabbed her small hands and forced them onto his chest, and he noticed the surge of lust in her wide eyes the moment she made physical contact with him. Still holding her wrists, he felt her fingers splayed and rubbing his chest, in circles. His grip around her wrists softened as her hands roamed his body, touching the thick cotton of his black jumpsuit, running up his neck, and finally touching his mask, the cold latex contrasting against her sweating palms, and Corey felt her hands cupping the back of his head, holding him.

Her small body pushed against him at this point, and Corey was consumed by a thunderous wave of arousal, feeling her small, soft body touching against him, the most human contact he had since their last sexual encounter. He had to admit, he was demanding for more attention from her, but because she was his best friend, he knew it would be wrong. What they did that night was out of desperation, with no actual love behind it…to him, anyway.

But he regarded Sallie, how she looked up at him so admiringly, obsessed to the way he looked, addicted to _him_. She had been adulating him since she first met him, and something about that thought made his ego bigger.

Abruptly, he released her wrists and snatched her shoulders, forcing her back against the wall beside them, holding her there covetously. He then leaned closer to her, the latex of the mask creaking at his movement. Sallie could smell the rawness of cigarette smoke lingering in his breath. His eyes were locked on hers, hungrily, and they looked so spectacular beneath the black voids. 

"What do you want to do right now?" He asked in a harsh whisper. His eyes never moved, never leaving hers.

Sallie was panting, so frantically, like a little caged bird cornered, her chest pounding. But the adrenaline she was experiencing was a delicious high she had craved for so long. Her small hands reached up for the dreadlocks, caressing at them, erratically, her fingers weaving through them.

"I... I don't know..." She whispered in a wavering voice. She had forgotten about her food, now focusing on Corey's eyes, which leered through the mask, entrancing. "I wanna..." She ran one hand up one dreadlock, tracing her hand through the mask's dreadlocks carefully, stroking his skull again. Corey rolled his eyes slightly, almost letting out a groan of pleasure. His hands holding her shoulders tightly against the wall.

"You wanna what, babe?" He snarled hotly, his lips getting closer to hers. His body was getting closer to hers as well. His eyes were of ice though.

"I...I don't know..." Sallie murmured, as if drunk. Her mind was a hot buzz and she couldn't comprehend anything she was feeling. "I just wanna..." She shook her head, her other hand cupping his cheek, feeling the latex. Finally, she stood on her tiptoes, pressing her face against her masked friend, her eyes focusing intensely with him, both staring each other passionately like a vampiric trance. Then, she groaned. "I wanna...do bad things to you..."

Finally, Corey smirked, revealing his stained teeth in the blackness of his mask, his eyes ignited in delight. Sallie felt his hands running up both sides of her face, his fingers holding her skull possessively, and he watched her unnervingly, psychotic. His grip tightened, and with a thick groan, he pulled her against his face, kissing her harshly.

That was the first time Sallie and Corey had kissed, lips-to-lips, and Corey snatched Sallie up in a desperate embrace as she melted against him, her own small arms clinging onto him, the passion and fiery longing taking over them as they dissolved into a fervent make-out. Corey forced his tongue inside of her mouth, demanding entrance and frantically explored her tongue, wrestling it between wet kisses. Sallie’s nose pressed into the latex of the mask, but she didn’t mind. Corey held her head hard, holding her against him, having complete control over his best friend, as if scared that she would reject him.

But he would soon learn that Sallie would never.

Corey broke the kiss for a time, his jaw slightly hanging as if he was about to say something, but like an addiction, he kissed Sallie again, harder, enjoying this avidly. She clung onto him, her leg cocking around the back of his.

Both enduring the sensation of being wanted by another.

Finally, Corey broke the kiss again, gasping as he pressed his forehead against hers, his eyes so cold and demanding, reflecting her adoring gaze.

"Get on the fucking bed, _now!_ " He ordered, pointing to the bed. "On your fucking back."

Sallie immediately obeyed, her fear inkling softly underneath the overwhelming waves of covetousness. She wanted this man so badly, the only thing that she had left in her life. Corey watched through his dreadlocks as Sallie walked to the bed, sitting in the centre of it and laid back, her knees drew up, her pussy pressed wetly against her panties, almost presenting itself to Corey. As she laid back, Corey watched her breasts. They were rounder compared to Jodie’s, more of a handful. He remembered Jodie’s breasts so vividly, and Sallie’s were bigger. Of course, Sallie was a bigger woman than Jodie.

His eyes fastened onto her hungrily, seemingly flashing in the darkness.

“Corey…” Sallie whispered, her hands on her chest, shivering as a sudden coldness grasped onto her. Corey walked towards the bottom of the bed, staring her through the blackness. Hastily, hearing her plead, the masked singer placed a knee on the bed, and slowly crawled towards her, snatching at her knees and separating them, spreading her thighs and crawled closer to her, looming over her. The tips of his dreadlocks brushed up her tank top. Then his hand grasped at her chin cruelly, squishing her soft cheeks and lips. His grip was harsh, pinching at her.

“You want it?” He asked in a subtle snarl, panting huskily now, mirroring his thrill.

“I need it…” Sallie whispered; her eyes unable to leave his intense glare. Her hands reached for his face, cupping both hands on his cheeks. The two best friends shared the same desire, portraying it so differently. She was gentle, and he was harsh. “You want it?”

“I need it…” Corey growled through clenched teeth, a rumble in his chest as he reflected the same seething desire his best friend held.

“Corey, you make me so happy…”

The little small comment touched Corey’s heart, and he watched her for a moment.

_She’s lying…_

Sallie watched his eye muscle twitch.

“I don’t…” He lowered his hips down, now holding her down on the bed with his weight, pinning her. Sallie moaned softly to feel his groin pressing against her pussy, which was now throbbing in eagerness. She was certain she could feel his erection, and she genuinely wanted more. It was nothing like the toy. Possibly because this was the _real_ thing. “I don’t…want you to call me Corey…when I’m this…” Corey waved a hand over his face, spying the little dismay in her pretty eyes.

“W-Why not?”

“Because I am not Corey. I am a monster, a fucking number.”

“You’re not a number to me.” Sallie insisted, pulling his head down to kiss him, but she felt anguish when Corey repelled her advances, and held his head high. “You’re my Corey, my moron, my Faith.”

“I don’t _ever_ want you to call me _Faith_ when I’m like this…” Corey grilled, his eyes hard and warning.

“But…” Sallie held back her reply. “What can I call you…?”

“You pick.” Corey shot back, a little harshly. “You seem to be good at giving me names.”

Sallie wasn’t sure if that was an insult or not. But she took the challenge, her hands reaching for his dreadlocks and twiddled them between her small fingers, watching it. Corey observed her callously, judging her actions.

“So…when you wear this mask…you’re not Corey?” Sallie looked up at him from her hand. “It’s like you’re a different person, correct?”

“You…could say that. I don’t feel like Corey…I feel…like someone else.”

“It’s like when you dress up and become a different character. Maybe…that’s what you’re experiencing?”

Corey frowned, considering her statement. Maybe she was correct, he wasn’t too sure. Sallie continued. “This mask is _you_ at the end of the day,” Her eyes dropped as she looked for a name for this mask, feeling as though Corey’s life was suspended in the air before her, and if she refused to help him with this identity problem, he may never return as Corey, he may never resume his normal life. He needed closure for this demon he had created.

Sallie had read up on things like this, about sexual roleplay, and she thought for a time that Corey was aiming for that…but…this was part of the band. It was far more personal than just a simple roleplay…

“IOWA.”

Corey faced back to her, his eyes focusing on her moonlit face, how fragile she seemed under it. So precious and easy to snare…

His hands slid behind her skull, cupping it in both of his slender hands as he leaned down.

“IOWA?” His voice had softened slightly, dropping to a calm whisper. “Why IOWA?”

“Because it’s where you are born. It’s where you came from…so it’s a part of you…” Sallie’s hands cupped together, pressing against Corey’s chest, over his heart. “But it’s still cruel, haunting, derelict… it’s been nothing but hell for you, and your mask reflects that anguish to me.”

Sallie watched as Corey battled through his thoughts, wondering how much he liked the name. And he had to admit, Sallie had a great point. It meant something to both, which is what he wanted.

“I…I like it.” Corey said slowly, pulling Sallie’s head to his lips and kissed her lips softly, bringing her to him. As he kissed her, he noticed that Sallie’s lips were stained with his black make-up. But that was okay, she looked rather sensual with black lips. She suited it. It was as if he was transferring his own personal demon onto her, and she was drinking it up.

This…strangely made him happy.

“So…your name?” Sallie asked quietly against his lips, wanting Corey’s affirmation in their decision.

“IOWA.” Corey answered, his lips dragging from her mouth and down to her neck, tracing light kisses on her pale flesh, smearing black.

“Okay, IOWA.” His best friend mewed softly, her tone so lewdly that it was almost criminal. His body reacted to it, feeling a flush of pleasure as he heard her say his new name. Corey Taylor was not there anymore, and finally, he was able to bring out this side of him. With someone he trusted and accepted him.

His hand reached at her hair and snatched at it in an intense grip, making her gasp as he forced her head close to him, his face pressed against her neck. As he held her head captive, his other hand moved down, tracing over her body, his fingers and palm brushing over her breast, receiving small cute virgin moans from her, and his hand carried on moving, touching her stomach, and his fingers crawled under her shirt, running his own palm against her flesh. It was so soft, so hot to the touch, and the very primal sense of touching her naked body only provoked him more. He grunted against her neck, his lips slowly kissing it, deep, dragging his lips sweetly against her flesh, feeling how firm and untouched her neck was…something about Sallie being intact, such a pure virginity radiating off her, he found it too electrifying.

And she was all _his_ …

As his hand roamed under her shirt, Sallie’s hands were too exploring, finally touching terrain she had been desperate in feeling. The thick dreadlocks rubbed against her face and neck roughly, its coarse material grinding slightly against her skin.

Her hand reached down between his legs, pulling her hips away to allow her hand to reach, and she cupped his groin, feeling his growing erection beneath the jumpsuit.

Her best friend grunted, practically pushing his shoulders and chest harder onto her as she touched his cock. That was the very first time she had touched him. Her fingers delicately massaged his cock, and Sallie watched him squint his eyes inside the mask, her fingers gripping and tugging at him slightly, the jumpsuit an irritating barrier between them.

“Sal…” He managed to murmur, feeling the heat arousal clouding his head, and he slowly closed his eyes. “Sal, it feels good…”

“Good.” Sallie whispered, turning her face to him and kissed his lips aggressively.

IOWA kissed her back with equal force, holding her down on the bed as he felt Sallie grope his dick and balls, rolling them against his groin, and IOWA became frantic then, finally unleashing his primitive urgency with her. Breaking the kiss forcefully, IOWA sat on his knees, pulling away and grabbed the zipper of his jumpsuit, pulling it down insistently and revealed his tattooed chest and little belly.

“Your clothes. Remove them.” IOWA commanded, and watched with sick glee as Sallie hurriedly removed her tank-top, sitting up slightly to unclip her bra and threw it away, finally revealing-

IOWA’s eyes widened. He had expected Sallie to have some sort of tattoo on her body, one that no one would be able to see. Every woman he had fucked had tattoos decorating her body, the names of ex-lovers crossed out like an abused school textbook, so when he saw Sallie’s naked body unmarked, he was a little stunned. Strangely charmed by it.

So clean, so pure…

_All fucking mine…_

IOWA tilted his head to the side, gazing almost lovingly at her as Sallie reclined back onto the bed, her breasts rolled on her chest, so soft…. IOWA panted hastily at the sight, almost torn in not wanting to touch her, she was like a work of art that he had just discovered.

“IOWA?” Sallie whispered, spying the distracted expression in his eyes, and the masked singer looked back at Sallie, his eyes resuming its intense glare of possession. By her gentle nudge, IOWA lowered himself again, feeling the heat of her naked body pressing against him, his hand drawing up to her breast and finally groped it. It was swollen, plump with perky nipples, which were erected. They looked adorable.

A deep groan shuddered out of him, saliva glistening his lips, feeling her breast firmly and she whined against it, her head tilting back in bliss, eyes shut. IOWA liked that, it meant that she trusted him. “Oh, IOWA…” Came the sexual groan from the little woman, her hands touching his naked chest and began to rub them inside of his open jumpsuit, roaming around his hips and onto his back. She remembered how her nails dug into his flesh.

Promptly, IOWA released her breast, his hand cupping at her panties and wanted to tear them off, but a small slither of himself halted him.

_You’ll fucking scare her!_

Sallie leaned up to him, and she spoke words that will stick with him forever.

She said: “Don’t hesitate…just do what you have to do to me…”

At that command, IOWA finally dropped all humanity and grabbed onto her black panties, yanking them off her hips and ankles, throwing them away and revealed that pussy he had been yearning to claim since he first laid eyes on it. As expected, she was wet, now clean-shaven, her milky thighs quivering. His dirty hands grappled at the back of Sallie’s thighs, his determination dripping into his intentions, and he handled her a bit too roughly.

Sallie yelped in shock to feel his nails digging into her plump thighs as he forced them back, lifting her hips slightly and she watched with growing anticipation as IOWA’s masked face lowered down, and she felt the frighteningly cold latex pushing against her pussy, her clitoris rubbing against the rough texture and she winced sharply, flinching at the sensitivity when- “ _Fuck!_ ” Sallie squealed, her hands immediately grabbing onto his mask and gripped hard, pushing his face between her legs as she felt his lips kissing her swollen pussy, tasting in her natural wetness. He didn’t quite understand it, but there was something about it felt different, unscathed.

He pushed his tongue inside, ramming it between the swelling inner-walls, hearing the little Brit howling for him, her legs shaking in his grip. “Oh god! Oh my fucking _god!_ ” Sallie whimpered, a soft giggle tangling with her cries as she felt such unspeakable joy to this sensation, her eyes rolling back slightly.

IOWA’s eyes watched her hard, seeing the loveable expressions she was pulling as he rubbed the flat of his tongue against the ribbed insides of her pussy, groaning noisily against it, trying to match her feral sounds. IOWA pulled his head away from her pussy for a moment, his black lips pressing against her clitoris, and Sallie screamed harder, practically jumping away from IOWA, her hand grabbing onto her pussy. IOWA looked at her, almost furiously, seeing her pink sweating face panting, her hands covering her groin. “That…that hurt…”

“So cute….” IOWA sneered, a little nastily at his virgin friend. Then he was on her again, his hand holding her throat, hard enough to hold her in place, having no intentions in choking her. “I want to fuck you…”

“Fuck me, please…” IOWA judged Sallie’s eyes, and he could see the true devotion she had for this man, the desperate need in having him inside of her. She was so ready, so passionately horny…

Sallie pushed IOWA off her, and to her surprise he obeyed, standing on his knees as Sallie stood on her knees with him, her hands on his shoulders. Sallie kissed him again, setting another compulsive fire of hunger inside them both. IOWA didn’t mind, he adored all the kisses, all this attention from a woman like her…

He _needed_ it. He never felt this way about anyone before, not even with Jodie…she always made him feel worthless…

But Sallie, she was so ready and eager to please him-

He felt her hand scrambling beneath his jumpsuit, and she grabbed his cock inside, her small hand squeezing at the shaft and IOWA emitted an outcry of surprise against her lips. Swiftly, Sallie kissed him again, holding the same demand as he did before as she rubbed her hand up and down, enjoying the heat there, the muscles hardening under her touch.

He was getting hard because of _her_ …

Sallie had no intentions in dragging this out as long as it did. She wanted his cock inside of her, so feverishly. And so, her gentle foreplay quickly turned into aggressive jacking off, making the masked man yowl lewdly, his body slightly hunching down against her as her hands rubbed him, squeezing harder and harder, her other hand reaching down and grabbed his balls.

“Sal…”

Sallie was drunk with sex now, not hearing her best friend’s plead, and she was already pressing her mouth onto his neck.

That was when she bit him again, her teeth digging into his thick, hard neck muscles. IOWA howled again to the ceiling, and he was certain he was going to climax just from this, his own body hot and paralysed with the seizure of pleasure. He was so desperate for this too, the yearning that built up between them making them forget about the dark world outside. He felt her teeth clamming harder and harder, love-bites a terrible turn-on for him. The mask’s dreadlocks flickered; a piece of darkness seemed to have darkened around them.

“Fuck me…fuck me…” Sallie snarled through her teeth, clamping onto his thick neck, sucking against the flesh, bruising it, marking him as hers. She pulled away, saliva dripping down her chin and she looked at her work with love-sick pride, her hands jerking him endlessly, making the intimidating supervisor crumble and melt against her, becoming a ragdoll. “I need you inside of me….”

“Lie the fuck down.” IOWA growled, his cock now painfully hot and throbbing. Sallie obeyed, lying on her back before him and IOWA stared down at his little friend, his _best_ friend, his virgin lover…

_I’m gonna fucking break you…_

IOWA grabbed the sleeves of his jumpsuit and ragged it off his shoulders, dropping it down to his knees, and decided against having it on at all. So, he removed the whole jumpsuit, throwing it carelessly onto the floor with Sallie’s tank-top and panties. He only wore his mask, which looked remarkably haunting in the darkness. The dreadlocks wavered in the shadows as he crawled towards her again, pinning her down, and Sallie smiled widely when she felt his twitching cock touching her stomach. The skin-on-skin contact made the pair of them take a deep, long breath. Corey had fucked plenty of times, but for some reason this felt different. Perhaps it was because it was _IOWA’s_ first time. No, Corey was a waste of a man…Sallie didn’t deserve such second-hand trash. She deserved the best, and IOWA knew he fitted the bill.

IOWA leaned down, his forehead pushed onto hers, their eyes locking, the ropes of dreadlocks fell and hung all around her.

“Sallie…” IOWA murmured, as if trying to learn the name of his claimed prey. Sallie tilted her head back, her eyes closed, puckering her lips and kissed him.

“Mmm,” She emitted, biting his lower lip and tugged onto it, IOWA watched almost numbly. “IOWA…” When her eyes opened, they held an obsessive desire behind them, her eyes regarded him with such an affection he wanted more and more of it. Sallie released his lip and kissed him again.

He knew what she wanted, and her eyes gave him permission. Sallie watched as IOWA’s hand reached down, without removing his eyes off her. He had grabbed onto his cock, and Sallie felt him moving, shuffling his hips between her thighs and took position. IOWA had every intention in being gentle with her, considering this was her first time, and was probably very frightened despite the hunger in her eyes, but he knew he couldn’t promise anything. Like a demon possession, Corey had no control in this anymore…

Sallie felt the head of his cock pushing against her pussy lips, and IOWA watched her eyes widen in growing amazement, the sensation to her so unspeakable that her jaw dropped in a soundless gasp. The little Brit lurch back into the mattress as he thrusted his hips deeper into her, stuffing himself inside of her fully, his own eyes rolling back to feel the already-tight walls squeezing his cock.

“F-Fuck…” IOWA whined under his breath; his voice strained. He was amazed, this didn’t feel anything like he’d imagined, and Jodie wasn’t as tight when he first dated her. This was truly uncharted territory, and Sallie trusted him so much in having him.

“Shit…this feels…fucking…” Sallie was spewing words now with no conscious thought behind it. This feeling was far greater than when Corey used the dildo on her. This felt more _real_ , so much more intimate, and to her amazement, she felt the love for this man grow more and more. Even feeling his low, hanging balls touching against her ass-cheeks, and Sallie chewed her lower lip, her eyes rolling back as she tried to register this amazing rush of newfound ecstasy.

“You look so fucking adorable when you’re under me…” IOWA groaned dirtily, watching the little woman submit beneath him, and he enjoyed every single fucking moment of it. Sallie was granting him this new phenomenon that he had never felt before, bringing something to life inside of his chest. Even his own adrenaline was thriving off this moment, and he wasn’t the virgin.

IOWA lowered himself down onto her, pressing his chest against her, and grabbed her skull, his fingers weaving through her hair and the two friends shared a grin of eagerness. IOWA’s smirk was almost crooked, a proud look of a predator capturing his victim, and he chuckled through his smirk.

He pulled his hips back, mimicking the same motion as he did with the dildo to her, and he enjoyed watching the mixture of emotion raining down Sallie’s glistening face. He loved how her eyes widened in growing zeal, her brows bowing in such worship, lips puckering, so pink, so sweet, his own inky-black paint smearing her pretty face, and he was okay with this. He was already taking her as his own. The moment he felt the tip of his cock coming out, he thrusted hard and frantic back inside of her warmth, and Sallie squealed in shock, feeling the slight discomfort and hurting from it. But IOWA’s jaw dropped slightly, fascinated by her expressions and what he was doing to her body, his hips feeling so numb with the irresistible satisfaction. And without any warning, IOWA began thrusting, in and out, jabbing his hips between Sallie’s thighs, and while he was trying to be loving and gentle, his eagerness got the better of him, and he bit his lip, his eyes narrowing in focus as he fucked his little best friend furiously, his body running on this starvation he had for sex, never feeling this fantastic before until now.

_No one has ever made me feel like this…_

Sallie was crying out constantly, each thrust rewarded IOWA with a filthy moan, her hands stroking his face as their bodies became disturbingly hot, overdrive, two beings making love under strange circumstances. She was touching him. _Too much._

Grunting, IOWA grabbed her hands and pinned them down on both sides of her head, holding her down as he continued to fuck her, his thrust getting more harder, more destructive, losing control of himself.

He wanted to brutally rape this precious small thing…

He witnessed how Sallie was thrashing beneath him, and for a time, he thought she wasn’t enjoying it, and a small sensation of ice slid in his veins. However, he saw her expression, and fell in love with it. So subversive yet sublime, she was like a dream, smiling so stupidly happy as the lecherous chemicals took over her awareness, blinding her to the monster that was fucking her. But even when she looked at him, there was no fear. No hatred.

She simply adored this man…

IOWA smirked darkly, lowering his head down and kissed her hard, his tongue writhing inside of her mouth, their thighs becoming drenched with their sweat and her wet anticipation.

Something kept lifting inside of Sallie’s chest, and when IOWA felt her hands on his back and gripped hard, he pulled away, the crooked masked man glaring down at her obsessively.

“You’re close.”

“I’m trying to hold on-”

“No. Cum for me.” IOWA demanded thickly, his hips pushing and holding hard against her pussy. Sallie whimpered in curiosity as IOWA snatched her small body up, and without pulling out he lifted her against his body. Instinctively, the little woman clung onto him, her legs wrapped around him as he shuffled his knees to the headboard of the bed, throwing Sallie’s back against the wall. His hands holding her ass, holding her up against him and the wall, he spread his knees apart and began to thrust up inside of her.

Sallie screamed again in lascivious delight, her arms holding around his neck, trapping the dreadlocks beneath her arms, but it didn’t matter. Latex and sex were thick in the air. As IOWA thrusted, he did it with such a force that it made the bed rock hard, the headboard knocking against the wall at each thrust, timing almost perfectly to his balls clapping against her ass-cheeks.

“J-Jesus fucking Christ, I love your balls!”

IOWA heard the woman’s comment, and with a smug grin, he slowed his pacing, but only thrusted as hard as he could, practically stabbing her insides, his balls smacking. Each thrust Sallie howled, her face buried into his neck, smelling the musk so strong now, his sweat drenching her face.

So obsessively, IOWA clung onto the woman, never allowing anyone to go near her again. He vaguely remembered what happened at work, where Jodie’s brother attacked her. They could have very well raped her then, and take this opportunity from him-

IOWA’s icy blue eyes flickered into disembodied euphoria and acidic hatred. Sallie had roamed the streets, alone and destroyed by her father and his stupid wife, and she could have been killed while so alone-

_I can’t leave her alone! She’ll get killed! Everyone wants to rape her; everyone wants to kill her-_

Frantically, those dangerous thoughts clouded his mind, and wouldn’t leave him alone, suddenly becoming sceptical. Something made his assumption so vividly accurate, despite no evidence.

With a growl, IOWA got violent again, making his little friend squeal for more.

“Hey! Hey! Too hard!” Sallie cried out, but IOWA seemed to have blanked at that moment, his face pressed against her shoulder, his snarls so deep and animalistic.

“No one…is gonna…fucking hurt you…anymore…”

“This _is_ hurting me!” Sallie grumbled, her hand reaching for his face and with force she pushed him away, making him look at her. “Slow do-”

IOWA didn’t listen, his lips snatching onto her neck and Sallie shrieked in ache, his teeth piercing her delicate flesh and to his pride he tasted fresh iron liquid in his mouth. Blood.

_I’m not leaving you! I’m not leaving you! I’m not leaving you!_

_Too precious…too precious…too precious…too precious…._

**_FUCKINGMINEYOUWILLALWAYSBEMINEIWILLTEARYOUAPARTIWILLRECOMBINEYOUALLIWANTISTOCOVETYOUUPYOUBELONGTOMEIWILLKILLYOUTOLOVEYOU-_ **

IOWA’s thoughts shot through his conscious so uncontrollably, the screaming inside of his skull deafening what was happening, and Sallie seemed to mute for a time. But she was _smiling_. He was making her feel better!

The bite shocked Sallie, but something about it triggered another addiction, and her scream dwindled into a naughty giggle, her mouth opening, tongue sticking out as she panted, gasping for air, feeling her pussy becoming hot and numb. But the surging inside of her-

“Shit…” Sallie mewed.

Behind her, the wall banged, the signal of an annoyed neighbour hearing their animalistic lovemaking. IOWA heard, pulling his mouth away from her neck and bellowed:

“ _FUCK OFF!_ ” He punched the wall four times, perfectly calculated, before gripping onto Sallie and hugged onto her, throwing himself back and falling into the spewed mess of the bedding, clinging onto Sallie like a child with its most-loved doll. Sallie straddled over him, her hands holding his chest and tried to pull away, but IOWA was addicted to this sensation, so much, his eyes almost bleached in the euphoria, small giggles leaking past his grinning lips as he pinned Sallie onto him. His heels dug into the bed, and defiantly thrusted up in her. Sweat and black paint smeared them, and it seemed to be enough to make the little Brit reach that peak. IOWA’s eyes were up to the ceiling, panting heavily through a grin, his expression strangely fixated on that as he felt Sallie’s pussy clench in release, and he squinted to feel her climaxing.

Sallie, all stuck in a trance with this rough sex, grabbed onto his shoulders and felt her body loosen, her lower stomach and pussy on fire, and just as she orgasmed, she arched her back and tilted her head back, the indescribable feeling she was experiencing was something even far greater than what had happened after her birthday.

“Ow-!” Sallie barely managed to say, with IOWA greedily snatching onto her and forced her back in his arms, regaining consciousness for a moment.

“Fuck! Fuck! FUCK!” IOWA was screaming, his orgasm edging closer, his words lacing with her own squeals of pleasure. Roughly, IOWA rolled over the bed, forcing Sallie onto her back while she was in mid-orgasm, now getting desperate for his own. His little mate wrapped her legs around him hard as she orgasmed, longer than before, her body thrashing beneath him as it could not handle this uplifting feeling. IOWA fucked her brutally on the bed, the mattress bouncing beneath his knees.

_No, not good enough!_

Sallie squealed, a mixture of shock and excitement, as IOWA halted his thrusting for a moment, the little woman stunned and intoxicated with her orgasm, light-headed, dizzy. Sallie let IOWA do as he pleased, who grabbed her ankles and lifted her up, and up…

Now Sallie was bent, her whole weight on her shoulders, her back arched and IOWA was straddled over her, standing above her, one foot by her head and trapped her hair. She whined to feel this, trying to signal IOWA off her hair, but he was too drunk with sex to even care. Positioned with their legs crossing, scissoring, he rammed his drenched cock inside her pussy again, which was now spewing with her cum, and the wet slapping of flesh upon flesh sounded the air, IOWA’s throaty grumbles and Sallie’s whimpers mixing. But, thankfully, this didn’t last too long, as IOWA felt the warning of his orgasm surfacing, and looking down at his possession, at his little black widow, he grunted. “Fuck…I’m almost there…”

That was the only warning he gave. Dazed, Sallie watched from her breasts as IOWA savagely thrusted against her pussy, holding her ankles so cruelly it was starting to hurt. From the awkward position she was in, Sallie watched IOWA and for a moment, it looked like he was genuinely raping her, how aggressive he was, the desperation and urgency just to mate with her. He was a fucking animal! His teeth bared in the darkness of his mask, his eyes compulsive and nasty, untamed and crazy, saliva flicking from his mouth and leaking down his body, oozing black, dripping lines down his chest.

IOWA howled, tilting his head back as he kept fucking her, and Sallie winced as he came inside of her, a stinging hotness seeping in. Neither of them was worried. Sallie was infertile, so they knew this was okay… But Sallie _was_ worried about Corey. She watched as he brutally fucked her, his gasps becoming animalistic and ruthless, his snarls merciless and inhuman. He even shoved one of her feet against his mouth and bit down onto her toes lightly, using it to muffle his bellows of pleasure, suckling.

She was struggling to breathe from the awkward position he had forced her into, her hair trapped under his foot and she couldn’t move, IOWA having complete control of her small body, and Sallie let him have his way with her.

And then, finally, IOWA was finished. His legs shook hard, trembling and shaking the mattress beneath them. His grip slowly loosened around her ankle, and with a sigh, he dropped them, allowing Sallie’s small body to flop onto the mattress, his cock slipping out of her pussy so easily, slick with their cum, his balls throbbed.

For a long time, IOWA and Sallie said nothing. They just tried to catch their breaths. Sallie regarded him, wondering what he was going to do now, feeling so warm and genuinely loved. Her trembling fingers reached for the calf of his leg, touching the naked muscle there.

IOWA looked down at her touch, his eyes gradually softening to see her not disowning him. Instead, she seemed to still want to be with her.

“Fuck…” Sallie mewed under her breath. IOWA’s eyes slid to his foot, seeing that she was trapped underneath it and he finally moved it. Sallie rolled onto her side, shuffling back to the pillows and rested her head on there, drained from energy. Of course, for a virgin, she wasn’t used to such a pleasuring assault, so her body was bound to struggle to catch up. But that was okay, IOWA will have plenty of time with her. He grabbed his cock, noticing something red on Sallie’s inner thigh and he looked down, seeing blood on his cock. It was faint, but he knew what had happened, and a sickening smirk of triumph came to him.

_Such a rewarding thing…_

“IOWA…”

IOWA looked back at Sallie, seeing his best friend lying on her side, looking so drunk and astonished. Satisfied. He felt content with that sight. It wasn’t just a sex-crazed woman that fucks all the time, it was his friend who appreciated him as a person, as a _man_ , her virginity gifted to him in return of his trust and comfort, and he will fucking cherish it. His fingers glided over his cum-soaked cock, scraping her blood off him and stuffed his fingers in his mouth, tasting it. Tasting her virginity, having it inside of him. If he could, he would slice his wrist and seep her blood inside of his system, so that she was forever a part of him-

Seeing the pleading gaze from her, IOWA knew what she wanted. Dropping onto his knees suddenly, he collapsed onto his hands and hunched down, crawling towards her, one shaking hand touching her precious face.

“I wanna fuck you more…”

“I’m exhausted…”

That annoyed IOWA, but a small essence of Corey was coming back. His crime had been committed now, and his old self was returning. IOWA tried his luck, bending down against her small body, his cock grinding against her hip, fingers reaching down between her thighs.

“Let me-” He flicked at her clitoris, and Sallie squeaked in alarm, clenching her thighs hard. Her clitoris was too sensitive, so engorged from the sex that it was too painful to even touch.

“N-No, please, I can’t…” Her eyes looked back at him, and she saw the fury building up. “Just…cuddle with me…please…”

IOWA rolled his eyes with a grunt, evidently unimpressed, but then he blinked, and the expression was gone. With one hand, the man unbuckled the belts and removed the mask, revealing the red, shattered face of Corey, his face painted in distressed black.

He had returned.

Corey looked down and smiled, sweetly this time.

“You were so good,” Corey commented, leaning down and kissing her lips tenderly, his hand stroking her stomach and legs, congratulating her for her first time.

“I want more, but I-”

“Ssh.” Corey gently placed his two fingers on her lips. “It’s okay. There is plenty more where that came from.” He kissed her lips again, grazing his teeth onto her cheek and neck, kissing her lovingly behind her ear. After-care. Something he always gave but never received.

Sallie seemed to have read his thoughts, as she grabbed his shoulders and pulled him onto his side before her, sitting up and began to run her hands over his sweltering body, delicately stroking his aching muscles, her lips constantly dotting and cherishing his face and neck. She reached to her bite-mark, which was bruising under the moonlight, and she ran her tongue over it, kissing it kindly. Corey laid there, watching Sallie dreamily as she took care of him, rewarding him too. Then she paid attention to his mask, which he held onto. She took it from him, and trusting her with it, Corey let her, watching as she brought the mask to her face and kissed its forehead too, kissing IOWA one last time for tonight.

Corey and Sallie left the bedroom after that, placing IOWA back in its place. Taking her hand, Corey brought Sallie to the bathroom, sharing a sponge-bath together, their after-care continuing without them noticing. They were just doing what they have always done since day one. Take care of one another.

And when they were washed, they refused to wear clothes, finding a new level of comfort with one another’s naked bodies. They returned to the bedroom, tucking themselves into Corey’s bed with the blanket over them. Corey held Sallie from behind, holding the small woman against his chest and sighed contently, falling into a deep sleep with her, both rested and reassured that they were not alone anymore.

From the darkened corner, IOWA watched them.


	33. Exodus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains a slight, soft sex scene at the beginning.

Skin on skin contact, the definition of true intimacy. Sallie felt it the moment she woke up. The hot sun seeping through the cracks of the boarded window, warming her neck and face pleasantly. The room was still grim, dark and musky, but it was intensely humid, the scent of their aggressive sex last night still lingered.

Sallie stirred lightly, feeling Corey still clinging onto her. She was surprised to find his arms still holding around her, hugging her against him. But she didn’t mind it. It reassured her that he wasn’t simply ignoring her, that he _wanted_ her. He _remembered_ what happened last night.

As carefully as possible, Sallie turned, facing Corey and watched him sleep through a light haze of slumber. He was so adorable, so at peace. His cheek pressed in the pillow, lips slightly puckered, comically posed like a broken fish. It was adorable, and amusing. Sallie smiled warmly. She found herself loving him more and more. Waking up in the morning with another person felt…so sublime. So romantic…

Sallie rose a small hand to his brows, moving a thick dreadlock from his face, making sure she didn’t wake him up. She wanted to appreciate this absolute serenity he was experiencing.

_Fuck, you’re so wonderful…_

That was when Sallie found herself kissing him, his lips so tempting. She kissed his lips tenderly, unhurriedly, appreciating the soft warmth from them. She felt the slight indents of his teeth marks from how much he bit his lip, mirroring her own self-inflicted wound. Her hand touched his cheek, fingertips making contact as if too terrified to ruin him with her clumsiness.

Again, again, she kept kissing him, slowly, her eyes shut as she took in this moment, each kiss drenched with unspoken affection for the man.

_I love you…I really do love you…_

She wasn’t expecting Corey to kiss her back, and by the time she registered it, her eyes half-opened, she saw Corey reaching closer for her, now drowsily awake, grabbing her head and held her there, kissing her back.

Corey had never been disturbed out of his sleep with kisses so fleeting, so kind, but it was the most pleasant wake-up call he has ever had. It reminded him that, even after sleep, he had something to look forward to finally.

The kissing stopped briefly; their foreheads pressed together as they looked into each other’s eyes.

“Morning,” Corey murmured sleepily, and Sallie smiled back, her eyes seemingly twinkling in happiness. It was a sight he found himself wanting more. Seeing her happy because of _him_.

Corey felt Sallie move, pushing him onto his back as she laid on top of them, their naked bodies pressed together, and holding his face, Sallie eagerly kissed him again, moving her lips onto his neck, butterfly kisses. The dreadlocked man’s arms wrapped around her, holding her against him as he enjoyed this attention, shutting his eyes as the little woman worshipped him.

As she kissed him, Corey felt her legs drop on both sides of his hips, straddling him, and she sat up, revealing her bruised neck and pale, soft body, the sunrays bouncing off her, like a porcelain sculpture in the centre of a beautiful garden in summer. Grabbing her hips, stroking them devotedly, Corey watched her, her breasts so plump yet soft, hanging subtly, so natural. A _real_ human.

_How could anyone abuse this beautiful thing…_

**_I wanna break her…_ **

Corey’s palm touched her stomach, stroking her lovingly.

“How did you sleep?” Sallie whispered at last, strays of hair hanging over her face.

“So fucking good.” Corey groaned, his fingers drawing lines over her bellybutton. Sallie was very aware she was sitting on Corey’s flaccid cock, and despite it being soft, she felt the compulsive urge of having sex with him again, her body recalling how it felt last night, a dreamy state of desire, no pain, no hate, no hell…

It was the most pleasure she had ever felt, and she wanted more.

Her hands met his, grabbing them and their fingers interlaced like a lover’s grasp, holding hands as they watched each other, the lethargic sensation of sleep slowly filtering out of their bodies. Corey noticed her holding his hands harder, with a determined grip, and when she began to subtly move her hips, grinding herself against him, Corey’s eyes lit up, a cheeky smirk drawing his handsome face. “Hey, what ‘cha think you’re doing?”

“Nothing.” Sallie mewed in mock-innocence, lowering herself down to him, pinning his hands onto the bed. “Nothing at all.”

Corey snorted.

“Sure you’re not.” Though they both knew she was being sarcastic. They knew exactly what she was doing, and their bodies were agreeing with this. Corey was feeling his erection coming already, feeling the hot flushes of arousal building in his lower stomach. “Sal, breakfast.” Corey tried to stop her, though not hard enough, feeling his best friend getting wet against his lower stomach, her pussy excruciatingly ached for him already.

“Food can wait…” Sallie hushed, her hips grinding against him more aggressively, smiling, her breasts swaying as her body did indescribable things to him. For a virgin, she knew what she was doing. She knew what she wanted.

“You didn’t even eat my burger last night, you bitch.” Corey smirked, spying the playful glare from Sallie.

“I wanted _you_ , you dummy.” Sallie sighed lustfully, pulling Corey up so that he was sitting up, his face against her warm, soft breasts as she held him against her, embracing, tangling their bodies in a lover’s hold. Her hands taking his head, Sallie made Corey look up to her, and he realised with shock that she was so ready for more.

Not that he was complaining.

His erection was completely hard now, ready, prodding against her pussy. “Fuck me, please.”

That was all Corey needed. Suddenly, he threw Sallie to the side of the bed, forcing her on her back and was on top of her, already pushing his cock inside her pussy and clutched onto her, making love to her unhurriedly during that morning.

Unlike last night, where it was feverish and primal, Corey was slow, hot and loving, cradling her head and kissing her constantly, a slow, sultry lovemaking session, allowing the distressed best friends to appreciate one another’s company.

Sallie had never felt so in love before…

* * *

**January, 1995**

“Hey hey! Is that a love-bite I spy?!”

Sallie flinched, cowering against the booming voice of Mick as she darted away from him.

“Love-bite?” She stammered, trying to subtly pull the hood up against her neck, tugging at her hoodie.

“You dumbass.” Mick’s meaty hand snatched at the hood, yanking it down and slightly choking Sallie, his other finger stabbing at the bruise. “There!”

“Ow!” Snatching herself away, her hand covered the love-bite, which was pitifully covered by foundation Sallie had slapped on unprofessionally, making it stand out against her natural skin-tone. “It’s just a bruise I got the other night.”

“A love-bite.”

“No, I got assaulted with something the other night in _Stairways_.”

“A love-bite.” Mick wasn’t buying it. “For starters, _Stairways_ is shut until the 5th of January.”

Sallie forced a guiltily grin. It was the 2nd of January. Hurriedly, Sallie walked around the living room of Joey’s home. Joey and Sid had gone out to get food and alcohol for tonight’s band practise. There was a few more hours before the others joined them, and so Mick and Sallie were alone in the house. A perfect time for Mick to interrogate Sallie about his suspicions.

“I also had an allergic reaction to a corncob.”

“How the fuck can you be allergic to corncobs?” Mick stated abruptly, his brilliant blue eyes huge behind his modified hockey mask, black hair framing it so fiercely.

“You’re allergic to bullshit!”

“That’s different, you numbnut!”

“How can you be allergic to bullshit, it doesn’t exist-!”

That was when Mick’s giant hand snatched at Sallie’s neck, and she was giggling, knowing what was about to happen. This happened often between the two when they were playfighting and mock-arguing. Her hands grabbed his wrist, Mick’s other hand supporting her back and lifted her in the air, mimicking a wrestling move and he hurled Sallie into the sofa, the little woman squealing in glee.

“ _You_ exist!”

“Wah! How rude!” Sallie grinned as Mick leaned down to her, both hands around her neck carefully. “No wonder why your _s-i-n-n-n-g-g-g-g-l-l-l-e-e-e-!_ ”

Mick was now shaking Sallie aggressively in the sofa, pretending to strangle her like the TV show, _The Simpsons_.

“Confess! _Confess!_ ”

“Never!” Sallie choked between laughs, Mick’s arms too strong for her to escape, even if she tried. Soon, the behemoth calmed down, pulling away from the crushed woman on the sofa.

“Confess or I sit on you!”

“Sit on me, I don’t care!”

That was the wrong answer. As Mick turned around, Sallie held her arms up and screamed with a smile, the towering man carelessly crashing onto the sofa, sitting on Sallie in the progress and sat there, rather comfortable as the little Brit thrashed beneath him. “Mick! Mick, you’re killing me!”

The masked guitarist said nothing. Instead, he just began to stroke his beard almost evilly, ignoring the little cries of the woman.

“I must be hearing bullshit…” Mick murmured, narrowing his eyes. He ignored the hands slapping at his back and leg, hearing Sallie now gasping for air.

“Get off you fat bastard!”

Mick continued to stroke his beard, nodding.

“Yeah, complete bullshit.”

When the little Brit squeaked enough, Mick finally got off her, not wanting to kill her. The guys would slaughter him- “So Corey bit you.”

“I-!” Sallie stalled. “What?”

Mick’s eyes smirked at her as he walked to the small kitchen, the sun warm and lethargic. He turned the coffee machine on, spinning around with his arms folded as he expected to see Sallie follow him.

He was right.

“Corey bit you.” Mick repeated as Sallie appeared by the doorway. Sallie forced a snort.

“And what _evidence_ have you got behind that, Judge Mick?”

When Mick’s eyes suddenly became serious, Sallie knew that Mick had _all_ the evidence in the world.

“Well, Corey has a love-bite on his neck too. I mean, can you fucking _miss_ that huge neck?”

_I actually really love his neck…_

Sallie bit down her tongue softly, holding back that statement. It would only prove Mick’s point right. Mick continued. “Also, the way Corey was acting during the new year’s party.” Taking out two cups, Mick began to prepare coffee for them both. He was remarkably calm about it, but he could feel Sallie stressing behind him.

“Corey was drunk…” Sallie murmured, bitterly recalling that night.

“Yeah, he was. Utterly fucking hammered,” He pointed a finger at her. “But he was _all over_ you.”

Sallie tried to hide her reaction, keeping her expression as blank as possible to not let on, but Mick was clever. He was expecting such denial. “He had his hands all over you and was just hugging you like…an obsessed boyfriend.”

“That’s the drink talking,” Sallie sighed. “He gets extra cuddly like that,”

“Yeah, but nothing like _that._ ” Mick replied, his tone a little terse. Mick tilted his head at her, judging her reaction. Sallie said nothing, her eyes looking everywhere but _Mick._ “But, Chris-”

“Yeah, that got nasty…” Sallie interjected suddenly, knowing that it was going to get mentioned. She looked up at him. “You don’t think Chris likes me more than a friend, right?”

“I can’t really say, Chris has always been a dumbass with sex…” Mick murmured. He too had been pondering about this. “Chris has a girlfriend…”

“Then there’s no problem!” Sallie piped up, approaching beside the gigantic man, who dwarfed her. She looked up at Mick as he finished the coffees. “I don’t know what Corey’s problem was.”

Mick said nothing for a time, but Sallie could tell he was thinking deeply about something. Taking Corey’s relationship with Jodie into mind. After a long moment, Mick finally spoke.

“I wanna do an experiment.” Mick mumbled, handing the coffee to Sallie. She took it with her tiny hands. “But first, I need the truth.” Mick’s eyes held Sallie commandingly. “You guys had sex?”

Sallie dithered.

Mick’s eyes narrowed at her.

“Yeah,”

“And there’s nothing wrong about that,” Mick replied, his voice a deep bass that rumbled in his throat, surprisingly calm. “If anything, I was expecting you guys to have sex sooner, with the way you both cling onto each other.” He softly shook his head, his black hair fluttering at his shoulders. “You’re like a married couple…”

_Marriage…_

Mick knew that their bandmates won’t be here anytime soon, so he removed his _Slipknot_ mask and placed it on the side, bringing the cup of coffee up to his lips. “How many times?”

Sallie grumbled something.

“Hm?” Mick hummed, his eyes seizing Sallie under his command.

“About…” She stopped, and when Mick’s eyes remained fastened onto her, Sallie decided to just admit it, casually brushing her nose and looking away from him. “About three times…”

“Ha, fuck!” Mick chuckled, a hearty boom leaving him. “I’m impressed. I was expecting once, to be honest.” His eyes slid to the coffee maker. “But that makes sense…and it would make this experiment interesting.”

“This experiment you speak of…” Sallie frowned. “You’re not gonna kidnap me and pretend to rape me or something, right?”

“I’m not sick like Shawn!” Mick cried out, his eyes sparking, offended. Shaking his head, he began to drink his coffee. “Nah, it’s more of a reaction test.” He pointed at her and himself. “You and I pretend to date.”

It was Sallie’s turn to look offended.

“Mick, I can’t do that!”

“Hey, it’d be gross if we _actually_ did. You’re a little sister to me.”

“It won’t work, and-” Sallie stopped. “Wait, _why_?”

Mick smirked at her.

“I wanna see how fucking jealous Corey gets. See what happens.”

As expected, Sallie’s gaze hardened, and she gently shook her head.

“I’m sorry, I am _not_ doing that. It’ll be unfair on Corey and…it won’t work…”

Cupping his bearded chin, Mick sighed. Sallie had a good point, but he wanted to figure Corey out. “And… _why_ did you wanted to do this in the first place…?”

Mick looked at Sallie levelly, and he knew he needed to speak the truth.

“I worry about him sometimes.” Seeing the blank stare, Mick sighed again, his gaze dropping. “So…in November and December, he was falling…in a deep dark pit.”

“He was drinking heavily again, wasn’t he?”

_That’s not all he was doing…_

Keeping his promise with Joey, Mick nodded numbly. He wasn’t lying, but he wasn’t speaking the whole truth. He straightened, trying to obtain strength back.

“Jodie had done a number on him…but then he seemed to be better after Christmas.” When Mick looked back at Sallie, the little Brit replied calmly.

“We…had sex that night. I stayed over at his after I had an argument with my dad.”

Mick frowned sadly, fully aware of Sallie’s situation with her father and his wife. But he didn’t know that she had been _kicked_ out… “Uh, speaking of which…” Mick listened. “Could I…possibly stay over at yours tonight?” Mick cocked a thick, black brow at this.

“Um…sure.” He shrugged. “Why?”

“I don’t want to come back home tonight…”

_I can’t come back home…_

Mick studied Sallie hard. He wasn’t entirely convinced that was the real reason she was asking such an abrupt question. She only stayed over at his place once, and that was over New Years Eve…and now this…she could stay over at Corey’s place…unless…

“Did something happen?”

“No.” Sallie said, too calculated, but she didn’t know what Mick was suggesting. She utterly refused to say the following:

_I’m homeless._

Noticing her indifferent reply, Mick decided not to pry into it just yet. Instead, he resumed back to the man in question: Corey.

“So…Corey seemed a little better after Christmas,” Mick began, chugging the remains of his coffee, taking note that Sallie wasn’t touching her coffee. That was out of character for her. “He seemed more himself, but…he’s pretty clingy to you.”

“I’m clingy with him too.”

“Yeah, but that’s _you_. You’ve always been like that with Corey. But _him_ …” Mick wanted to keep talking about Corey, but there was a niggling sensation that he was missing something far more important. Sallie’s request in staying over at his place stood out in his mind too much. It seemed too random, so out of the blue…

Mick took in the details of the small Brit before him. He realised that he hadn’t seen Sallie in any other clothes, practically living in Corey’s hoodie, her hair seemingly greasier than usual. And whenever her phone needed charging, she would borrow Joey’s or Chris’ charger. She was…always on the move…always out… “Sal…” Mick started, but when he heard keys rattling against the door, warning that their friends had returned, he stopped. Mick glanced towards the door and faced back Sallie, his eyes promising her that he wanted to talk to her about this in private.

Reluctantly, Sallie looked away, unable to bear Mick’s determined eyes.


	34. Scissors

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains a distressing scene.  
> \+ Dark, inner thoughts  
> \+ Slight violence and blood

Mick was very unsuccessful with his questioning with Sallie that night. Once band practise was over, which consisted of mostly drinking and pranking one another after playing a couple of songs, Sallie had thanked Mick tiredly and collapsed onto his sofa, falling asleep.

It worried the guitarist, so much. With the way Corey had been acting, during band practise and when Sallie wasn’t around, he couldn’t help but feel as though Corey had done something to Sallie, which is why she was staying at his. Everyone in _Slipknot_ knew that Sallie stayed at Corey’s place almost all the time, staying at his place more than her own, so why the sudden change? She could have easily stayed over at Corey’s again tonight, or simply returned home…

What if she _couldn’t_ return home?

Mick was certain that was the case, but he needed more evidence to back this up.

* * *

**February, 1995**

"Hey Sal!"

Sallie spun around, surprised to hear her name being called in the deafening boom of music all around her. The room was dimly lit with coloured lights, and the room was hot, the air thick with sweat and bodies-

_Hotel California._

This was their new hangout in the new year. In the middle of January, an accidental death had occurred involving a headbanger falling backwards onto one of the giant speakers. A truly distressing night for everyone, including Sallie and _Slipknot_. Due to the severe incident, _Stairways_ was closed.

And never re-opened…

Now, Sallie was out again for the first time since then. The death spooked her enough to keep her away from the nightlife of Des Moines. But tonight, was a special night. _Slipknot_ were going to perform their newest songs, songs that Sallie haven’t heard before, and she wanted to be there.

 _Hotel California_ was far grand, an entire historic building dedicated to the society of heavy metalists and rockers, bigger and better than _Stairways_ …though Sallie will always miss that place. It was a part of her that will never leave, what made her stronger, _better_.

She punched Jodie right in the _fucking_ face!

_Where are you going to stay tonight?_

That hiss came inside of her skull, trapped and refusing to leave. Again, Sallie ignored it, but she could feel it returning in double strength, and eventually she too was going to be asking herself that.

_Nah, nah. I’m good! I’ll stay over at Sid’s place again!_

_No, you can’t. You’ve asked too many times…_

_Well, I can ask Joey! Or Craig!_

_Does Craig even like you?_

_He does! He does!_

_He never fucking talks to you._

_No…he’s shy and-_

_He **hates** you._

A hand grabbed onto Sallie’s shoulder, and instantly distracted from the thoughts, she turned and forced a smile, seeing two friends. _New_ friends she had made during the New Year’s party.

Liv. Bright and spirited, sharing the same height as Sallie. Which was always a blessing, it’s nice to talk to _people_ and not ‘trees’, as Liv would playfully point out. Even in the dim lights of the rock-club, her hair stood out so shockingly bright, a dazzling natural red, a magnificent shade that Sallie found herself rather envious for. It was natural, and that’s what made it so wonderful. Her perfectly round glasses glimmered in the lights around them.

And it was a relief for Sallie that she was found, otherwise those inner thoughts would have _surely_ defeated her by now. Things were getting harder, _too hard_ , _deadly_...

Beside her was Barbie. With an old-fashioned name like Barbara, the nickname _Barbie_ seemed to work better for Sallie’s new friend, far more suited for her playful and child-like demeanour. A pretty face with small features, wide sky-blue eyes stared through her mousy-brown hair, a crimson ribbon hairband decorated her hair, pulling her long locks back and keeping her neat fringe in order.

Sallie held her stiff smile at her friends, seeing their eyes locking onto her, greyish-blue and bright-blue, staring back at dark, hysterical blueish-blacks…

Eyes that had been opened for far too long…

_They’re judging you…_

_They fucking hate you._

"You getting a drink?" Liv piped up, pointing at the bar behind Sallie. “Jim’s made me his slave tonight.”

Barbie gave Liv a smug smirk, nudging her.

“Oh, is that what you guys call it now?” Barbie teased with a cute giggle, receiving a stern hushing from Liv. But their banter was always welcome. Sallie’s smile faltered slightly, relaxing but troubled.

"Just getting some water." Sallie replied, seeing the group of men leaving the front of the bar and she approached the empty space with Barbie and Liv, waiting to be served next.

"You excited for _Slipknot_?" Barbie asked in glee, and Sallie nodded.

"Of course! You know it’s gonna be a great night!"

"I think this is gonna be awesome.” Liv agreed, leaning against the bar and smiling sweetly at Sallie, her freckled face illuminated by the neon lights. “Corey's a genius in the sense of his music."

“I’m only watching because of Mick.” Barbie said in a mock-snobby voice, turning her head up as she folded her arms. “He’s the one I’m watching.”

“Yeah yeah,” Liv rolled her eyes, smirking, fanning her hand at the taller woman. “We all know you crush on him.”

“Fucking marry him, Barbie.” Sallie agreed, joining in the banter, and the friends watched as Barbie’s face went bright red.

“Hey! We’re just friends!”

“So’s Sallie and Corey, but they’re practically married!” Liv giggled, facing Sallie and saw her reaction mirroring Barbie’s.

“Hey!”

“Just date him now! It’s easier! That’s how I trapped Jim!” Liv giggled, and Barbie soon snickered, enjoying the little jest between the three of them.

Sallie laughed, half-hearteningly.

_I can’t…_

When the barman came to Sallie, her water was ordered, as well as Liv’s order and Barbie’s, who dedicated to kindly devote Sallie in paying their bill. Sallie glared at them with a smirk, but it was okay.

" _Anyway!_ ” Sallie began, changing the subject back to what they were talking about originally. “Corey _is_ a genius! Fucking beautiful! _Stunning_! All of them. It's gonna be a kickass night!"

Liv’s orders were made first. Two drinks came through for her and Jim.

"You ever thought about being in a band, Sal?" Liv asked suddenly, making Sallie returning to the present before her thoughts caught onto her vulnerability.

"Fucking always. But I just..."

_I can't…_

"Oh come on Sal, you would be awesome. Lead singer I bet." Barbie said as she patted her back. "It would be an awesome band I bet too."

“I’ll be your guitarist!” Liv piped up; her eyes sparkled in excitement.

“Can you even _play_ guitar?” Sallie murmured with a smirk, and Liv opened her mouth-

“Ah, so _there’s_ the missing moron!” A voice called out, familiar to all of them. At once, the girls looked up to see Jim, unmasked, approaching the three little women. His beard was growing out, grizzly and thick. Liv was practically melting at the sight of Jim.

“Here’s your drink, Beanstalk!” Liv shoved the beer to Jim’s chest, who took it with a knowing smirk.

“Yeah, thanks _Angel_.”

Barbie and Sallie eagerly watched as Liv and Jim talked, their kittenish relationship was always doting and amusing. Liv’s face blushed madly, already flushing from the heat of the rock-club, her nose and ears a cute pink.

Barbie and Sallie didn’t know this term of _Angel_ , but it was evidently a dirty little secret between the two. Scooping the small woman beside him, Jim pressed his lips onto Liv’s forehead, and then pointed a finger at Barbie and Sallie. “You ladies better enjoy tonight!”

“Oh, we will!” Barbie grinned radiantly, but beside her Jim noticed Sallie looked entranced by something, staring in the middle of nothing.

“Sal?”

Sallie blinked and looked back at Jim. She flashed an awkward smile, but it dropped almost too quickly.

“Jim, do me a favour please.”

“Sure.”

“Keep an eye on Corey.”

Jim tilted his head, and he saw heartache in Sallie’s eyes. She was catching on…

However, he nodded.

"Sure thing." He smiled.

"Is she telling you to keep an eye on me again, Jimbo?" A recognisable voice sounded from behind the band member. Jim leaned to the side, and Corey stood there, one hand in his pocket, the other holding a beer bottle, cigarette in mouth. Corey, to Sallie’s disappointment, had shaved his entire skull, removing those dreadlocks Sallie had grown so fond of, and a small layer of hair was starting to regrow, feeling like velvet to the touch.

He was still his handsome self, but Sallie felt something off about it…such a drastic change. And his excuse: _I wanted a change._

Something felt far deeper behind that façade statement.

Just like Jim, Corey was unmasked, and dressed in casual clothes, hiding their identity of their band, for now.

"C'mon Corey, she just cares about you a lot." Liv smiled, so cutely, as she nuzzled against Jim’s chest. 

“Yeah , yeah. Like a damned mother-hen.” Corey chuckled, pulling his cigarette from his lips and taking a drink of his beer.

Barbie took note of Sallie glancing away, a little ashamed of being caught mothering Corey again. Sallie wasn’t acting like herself, and even Barbie was noticing it.

Corey grabbed Sallie’s shoulders and pulled her into a strong hug, sensing the distress in his best friend. She was probably still freaking out over _Stairways_ …

"You ready, dickweed?" Sallie asked, eventually, holding a brave smile for him, to which Corey reflected back.

"Oh, I am always ready, _darling_." He said softly. Which was true, Corey was always ready for a show, and he was going to show the crowd what they want to see.

"Well, just be safe and make sure Sid doesn't fucking fly off stage this time."

Jim guffawed.

"We can't promise that!" Jim grinned, shaking his head before nudging Corey. "C'mon, we should get ready."

Corey made a noise of affirmation, nudging Sallie gently on the shoulder.

"I'll see you in the crowd."

Jim gave Liv a sweet, fleeting kiss on the lips before leaving with Corey, preparing themselves for the show. When they vanished in the crowd, Liv and Barbie suddenly faced Sallie.

"So, when you guys gonna fuck already?" Liv asked with a suggestive grin. She was obviously kidding, she knew they were very close friends, but she had to tease her.

Though…Liv didn’t know…only Mick, Sallie and Corey knew…

Holding that secret, Sallie punched Liv’s arm playfully, snorting.

“Shut up and let’s find our place.” Taking her glass of water, they then gathered and found their spot. Front row, thanks to Corey.

Barbie’s heart swelled in excitement. Seeing Mick on stage was always a magical moment for her, and even better when he was performing with his horror mask and dark jumpsuits. How ballistic these guys went during their shows. Such animals, but they spoke in indescribable levels that every single person here shared, spoken words that people were too frightened to say, and did things others were too terrified in doing…

Sallie found herself staring at the stage numbly, looking suddenly drained of life. Liv and Barbie didn’t notice.

"Corey said this show was gonna be fucking mental. He never disappoints." Liv said to Barbie, grinning brightly.

"If it's gonna be anything like his previous show, it's gonna be great!" Boomed a deep voice, and the friends turned to see a towering man with huge shoulders. For a second, they thought it was Mick, but with his cheeky smirk and seductive bright eyes, it was none other than-

"TORQUE!" Sallie beamed enthusiastically, drawing back to reality. Liv and Barbie watched as the beefy bodyguard wrapped his arms around the little woman and lifted her from the floor, swinging her slightly, her little boots swaying at the momentum.

After the disaster in _Stairways_ , TORQUE’s bodyguard position was taken away from him…so the smart bastard made his own rock-club, to which they stood in today.

“I’m glad to catch you!” Sallie hugged his strong neck, face buried in his long black hair. “I was told you own this place.”

“Oh yeah, after the bastards took my job away, I made my own club!” Came the proud announcement. He noticed Barbie and Liv looking up at him, almost fascinated with his bulking size and thick muscles. Leaning down slightly, TORQUE flashed his infamous, flirty smirks. “Hello ladies-”

“Liv is taken and Barbie is interested with someone else.” Sallie abruptly replied, making the bodybuilder roll his eyes.

“Fuck sake!” He faced Sallie, giving her a seductive look. “I’ll take you then,”

“Pfft!” Waving her hand at TORQUE, she was gently placed back down. TORQUE leaned down, grabbing and pulling the ladies together before him as he spoke softly to them all.

“Now, for you lovely ladies and _Slipknot_ , a special VIP treatment. Plus, I _really_ wanna bed Sallie.” He winked at Sallie, who received a mock death-stare. “Drinks are on the house from yours truly.”

“Ah, really?!” Barbie piped up, her eyes widening in delight. “Thank you!”

TORQUE winked at Barbie again, patting Sallie hard on the back before straightening.

“Just enjoy the night, ladies. This is a safe space for us.” His adoring eyes looked down at Sallie. “And you know where I am, sweetheart.”

“Yeah yeah, keep it in your pants, you moron.” Sallie chuckled, feeling a little more alive than before.

Corey and the others came onto the small stage. It wasn't a huge show, but it didn't matter. This was for friends and some of the public. Corey took centre stage as the others took their positions, gathering their instruments and preparing themselves. The Clown looked around the crowd and was relieved when he saw Sallie with Liv and Barbie, knowing she was safe.

“Is she going to be okay?” Mick murmured beside him, and Shawn shrugged.

“I don’t know. She’s hiding something.”

Mick knew that. Too much. He had been trying to get it out of Sallie, but her constant barrages of _‘I’m okay!’_ made Mick reconsider his theory.

At the front, Corey stood there, surveying the room.

Their outfits were haunting, deathly-black jumpsuits with their infamous masks. Corey still wore his mask...still wore IOWA, the one mask that Sallie had such a connectivity with. And it confused her mind. She was expecting Corey, and while she _knew_ Corey was there, all she saw…all she saw was IOWA.

His eyes shot down at Sallie suddenly, so icily, and Sallie felt a white-hot terrible thought.

_He’s going to hurt you._

But everyone around her screamed at the arrival of the band, the excitement sparking in the air, promptly blocking the bad voice.

Holding the microphone to his mouth, Corey spoke, his voice booming.

"Looks like we have a good amount of people. Are you all ready to fucking hear some noise!?" His voice exploded in the building. The crowd cheered in reply, arms held up and cameras held above the sea of bodies.

Sallie watched Corey, her eyes in a murky mystified contemplation. And the masked singer looked back at Sallie for one more time. He puckered his black-painted lips as if blowing kisses to her, wanting to reassure her that she was safe, and he managed to make Sallie smile.

Oh, Sallie was ready. She always enjoyed her friends’ shows, _Slipknot_ were always so passionate, and that's what made them unique in Iowa. There was nothing like it.

Liv held devil-horns up and screamed, and Sallie did too, looking at Corey with glee.

He never had a bad show. They were always such fun-

_He’s gonna rape you._

Sallie shook.

A strike.

Corey grinned to hear the positive reaction from the crowd, throwing his hands up, and the first opening to the song started playing, new songs that no one but the band have ever heard before. The crowd began rocking out, the song _Spit it Out_ lifted inside of the _Hotel California._ The song was tame to what they had planned for the end of the show, but no one could see what was coming.

From the bar, TORQUE was softly headbanging, smiling so proudly to see Corey and his bandmates performing ahead, and how everyone was happy, enjoying themselves. For a time, he thought if this was what _Stairways_ was like inside. Being a bodyguard, he rarely went inside. But now he was _here_ , the boss of this place, and he found himself realising that this was _better_ than _Stairways_.

Liv began screaming for Jim as he approached the edge of the stage, his head banging to the riffs he and Mick were producing as _Diluted_ began to play after, with Corey screaming and singing his heart out, the crowd blaring and cheering, bouncing to the beat of the music, watching as Corey was jumping up and down on the stage, emitting this brilliant energy of primal hatred, something that was therapy for them all.

And at last, Sallie was starting to feel better. She watched as her friends performed on stage, with Sid jumping from the overhead balconies and dived into the crowd, crowd-surfing. TORQUE was taken back by this, but chuckling, he watched as this superb vigour from the band didn’t seem to end. Sallie and Barbie grabbed onto Sid, hurling him back to the stage as he ran like a hyperactive child, and was already climbing onto another frame to jump into the crowd. It was like a game for them all, a game for this _family._

Curiously, Sallie grabbed her phone and pulled it out, looking at the time.

Another missed call from her father…

Feeling a pang of hurt, Sallie forced her phone back in her pocket, and her little essence of happiness was snatched away, reminding her that she was simply running away from everything…

After a few more songs, during which the night was getting older, and the crowd were getting more drunk, Corey stepped onto a black box on the stage, leaning over with the microphone to his lips.

"I hope you all enjoyed the show, Des Moines!” He cried out, hearing the roar of the crowd. He loved that sound, it's what drove him to become better. “But I have one last song for you all…” Placing a hand on his chest, his eyes looked down at Sallie, and something dark came upon his eyes.

Only Sallie saw it.

Keeping his eyes onto Sallie, he added in a low, soft voice: "This is something close to my heart."

" _Go onnnnn!_ " Barbie roared beside Sallie, just as excited as the crowd. They all had been chanting and screaming at the same time, oh so eagerly. Sallie wanted to share this vibe with her fellow rockers, but something was holding her back. Something in the night was out to get her, and it kept convincing her that it was _right_ in front of her. The mosh-pits had made her legs ache, the singing cut her throat, despite only knowing the chorus.

But it didn't matter.

Corey and his bandmates were in their elements, and she was just so proud of him-

_He hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you he hates you-_

_Another strike._

“This song is called _Heartache and a pair of Scissors_ …”

In the midst of Sallie’s dark argument, a song began to play. She had expected something heavy, something so full of life. Instead, it began with an untrusting soft intro of kegs being banged and a strange scraping sound. Despite the crowd behind her getting excited, cheering the band on, Sallie watched intensely.

The lights dimmed more, only illuminating the band-members in a blood-red spotlight. Circling around the stage, pacing, Corey waited, and as soon as he arrived back at the front of the stage, he unzipped his jumpsuit, revealing his tattooed chest to the crowd. Women screeched at the sight, and Sallie felt another strike.

_“I play doctor for five minutes flat/Before I cut my heart open, and let the air out…_

_Three bugs, a pound of dust_ _/ Some wind spilled before me_

_In the strangest manner that had_ _/Broke away my tear spout,”_

The crowd was now getting too enthusiastic, bodies knocking into Liv and Barbie, who seemed to be enjoying this more than ever, the surging power behind the disturbed music and singing so raw and amazing. But Sallie watched intensely, freezing.

 _“As I lie there/With my tongue spread wide open_ ,

 _A black widow had offered me/A sweetheart tube_ ,

 _As I injected/The candied heart that I selected_ ,

_She said don't hesitate/Just do what you have to do to me!”_

Sallie didn’t like those words.

Another strike.

The song quickly twisted, becoming brutal, cold, heartless. His brutality was shown through the lyrics as he sang them, screaming, his words becoming so torn, on the edge of a manic meltdown. Each verse got more aggressive, more threatening, darker…

And Sallie was finding herself shaking in the darkness, feeling sick suddenly.

Everyone around her didn’t see what she was seeing.

_Leave. Leave now._

_I can’t._

_Another strike!_

But during midway the song calmed down, luring their fans into a false sense of security. Sallie’s eyes turned to the stage, the blackness doing little good in hiding her suffering. But it seemed the mist of bodies and heat clouded everything.

Suddenly, IOWA was there, lowering himself onto one knee before Sallie, an arm outstretched towards her as his tortured voice sang softly, so sadly. His voice was firm and balanced, but IOWA was swaying, his head rolling to the motion of his rocking body, like a cracked doll.

_“Inside the places that I hide from you/I want to see you splayed before me,_

_You are the only one/That I would rather see before me,”_

IOWA waited; his hand held expectantly for Sallie.

_Take his hand-_

_IT’S CANCER-!_

Dumbly, Sallie reached for his hand, and to her horror, he suddenly slapped it away, pointing at her accusingly, his eyes abruptly pointed and cruel as he stood up, getting away from her. _Leaving her!_

The music was now screaming at her.

How he looked at her so… _maliciously_ …

**_Another strike!_ **

_“You want it, you need it…_

_You want it, you need it,_

**_You want it, you need it,_ **

**_YOU WANT IT, YOU NEED IT!_ ** _”_

“Stop it…”

IOWA was animalistic on stage, his eyes on her, his hand cutting into his chest. Nails dug into his chest and tore at the flesh, scratching at himself. It was crazy, the whole band seemed like wild animals on stage, but IOWA was like a wounded screaming beast, blood on his arms, his mask, his chest, his jumpsuit. He was tearing away at himself, inflicting more agony which only fuelled his voice. She felt her heart tighten as she watched the display. Corey was one for being so emotionally dramatic, but this-

IOWA didn't care, but the scene of it made the crowd love it, they were shouting for more, excited for the display of pure raw animalistic emotion. It was so unique, so raw and-

**_STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE!_ **

Sallie was now crouching, hands over her ears, eyes wide and desolate, rocking as she trembled hysterically.

IOWA stood silhouetted against the striking red light.

Even when Sallie closed her eyes.

IOWA was suddenly before her, looking down.

 _I’M OKAY!_ _I’M OKAY!_ _I’M OKAY!_ _I’M OKAY!_ **_I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I’M OKAY!_ ****_I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I’M OKAY!_ ****_I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I’M OKAY!_ ****_I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I’M OKAY!_ ****_I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I’M OKAY! I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜ I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜_**

#  _**I̷̺͋̌'̷̭̊M̴̛̟͂ ̵̯̻̾N̸̯͑Ǫ̷͉̈Ţ̸͊̈́ ̸͍̦̌O̸͙͂K̵̾͜Ã̸̖̘͒Ŷ̵̊͜** _

Sweat ran down her head, her legs shaking. But behind her the crowd seemed to have thickened, physically blocking her exits. She whimpered and glanced up at her friends, who were screaming and headbanging, unaware of Sallie’s evident anguish. IOWA was at the other side of the stage, screaming, his hand splayed open over the crowd, like a demonic monster searching for her soul, sifting through the bodies, _looking for her_ -

Sallie heard Barbie cheering for them.

Sallie’s head blanked, but promptly came back, dizzying, disorientating. The floor suddenly reached her face, her hand before her between blurred blinks, holding herself up drunkenly.

No one saw the bigger picture. They didn't understand that-

**_“Don't lie! I die, you lie! I lie?_ **

**_Oh, why? I don't want you to pay anyone when I die!_ **

**_I wanna die! I'd rather die! I wanna die! You purge!_ **

**_You burn! You purge! I don't need you anymore! I don't need you!”_ **

“Stop it stop it stop it stop it stop it stop it-”

**L E A V E.**

That command struck out within her mind, and that was it.

Springing up quickly, Sallie pushed her back against the crowd, the screams seemingly around everywhere, latching onto her. Ringing in her ears, screeching and hurting the inside of her skull. Her bones ache, her jaw ached. The stuff of nightmares, the breaking point of a man's will to live-

Determinedly, she forced herself through the crowd, practically forcing Barbie out of the way and inadvertently threw herself in a mosh-pit that was developing, and she was getting dragged into it, hands reaching for her hair and yanking, the collar of her hoodie tightened against her throat. She screamed as loud as she could, her teeth clattered as she latched onto strangers, begging for them to just let her pass.

Her vision blurred, and she was certain she was going to pass out.

_But this was Corey's friend. She always wants to mosh-_

With another screech that seemed too feeble compared to IOWA’s, Sallie managed to burst out of the mosh-pit, the raw instruments of metal clanging and IOWA’S screams-

_Let me out let me out let me out let me out-!_

With a hostile shift, Sallie snatched herself out of the hands and practically pushed people away from her, shooting through the edge of the crowd.

Her teeth chipped against the grittiness of it.

Through blackened eyes, Sallie found the thick wooden door that led to the bathroom, the heavy door slamming shut behind her and she scurried in the cubical, slamming the door shut and locked herself. The air was much colder here, the tiles bringing the chill in the air. But even through the hard walls, she could still hear his screams reaching through the cracks of the door. How he...wants to die...

Sallie scampered to the corner of the cubical, collapsing onto the floor and her head narrowly missed the toilet, clawing at the corner of it as if trying to escape away from the music, as hard as she could. She promptly gave up, sitting on the toilet seat and hugging her legs against her chest, accepting this, she clutched onto herself and wept hard, terrified, rocking anxiously as if she was on the edge of insanity and was about to fall in it. IOWA’s whimpers and beastly roars complimenting her own noises of animal fear.

Tucking her legs up, she sat on the toilet seat and clutched onto herself, trying to silence her weeping as she shook hard. But she cried, shaking her head. The bathroom was empty, and Sallie wept fearfully, trying to kill her sorrow as she panted heavily, her mind unable to clear.

IOWA kept screaming, and screaming, wild shrieks, harsh, lethal…

_He’s going to come in here and stab you with scissors-_

Sallie whimpered pathetically, her teeth chattering as an unspeakable chill seized her. The crowd cheered, shouting.

And finally, it stopped. The bathroom was too quiet, her sniffing and soft weeping echoed in the bathroom.

“That was fucking amazing-!” Liv cheered, clapping her hands madly with the crowd and turned to see Barbie. Her smile faltered. “Sal?”

Liv’s confusion made Barbie frown slightly, and she too looked around. Suddenly, Sallie was gone.

"Thank you all for coming out and joining us." Corey shouted to the microphone; his voice exhausted. The band took an exaggerated bow as the lights flooded back to the stage, and the show was over. He was looking for Sallie during the song and found that she wasn’t around.

Once Corey and the band went backstage, Corey grabbed the nearest liquor bottle, removing his mask and downed the liquor bottle like water, panting in relief.

"Sallie ran off.” Mick was suddenly behind Corey. “She's never done that before."

Glancing at the behemoth, Corey wiped his mouth with his sleeve, giving Mick his mask.

"I know. I'll go find her. She said she's okay…" With the bottle in his hand, Corey began to search. But first he needed to wash off the blood and wounds he created on his chest. His body was on a strange high of pain, and his vision seemed to have focused sharper. Walking to the bathroom, he placed the bottle on the sink, turning the tap on and began to wash the blood and black face-paint from himself.

But as he washed himself, Corey heard the soft sniffling and panting. He looked to the cubicles, listening. It sounded like someone was trying to hide their soft crying-

He recognized those weeps.

He walked to the one cubicle that was locked. "Sal?" He asked, placing his hand on the door.

Sallie looked up suddenly, realising in alarm that Corey was in here too.

"Uh, I'm having a shit!" She blurted out, trying not to sound like she was currently crying.

He cocked his eyebrow.

"Heh, that makes sense on why you ran from the crowd." Corey stepped away and walked back to the sink. "Well, I hope you liked the show." He said.

Nothing.

Corey waited. He knew she was crying. "You know," Corey spoke again, softer, turning the water off and jumped up to sit on the sink counter, drinking his alcohol. "You don't have to hide anything from me. We're friends, darling."

Sallie said nothing, listening to his words. The alcohol was taking him. Only Corey called her _Darling_ when he was tipsy.

She sniffed, tears running down her face.

"Corey..." She tried to talk again, but it came out in a strained whimper, a cry for help.

Her best friend looked to the door to where she was, and he took a few more gulps, emptying the bottle. Placing the bottle to the side, discarding it, he jumped from the sink. He was a bit buzzed now, but nothing too hard. He calmly walked to the stall and placed his hand on the top of the door, letting her know that he was there. He frowned sorrowfully. “Open up Sal, let's talk." He felt her strain, her pain. He needed to get in there. "I'll crawl under the door if I have to."

There was a pause.

"I'd...like to see that." Came the small voice, an inkling of a giggle. But then it dropped quickly, a sob hitting her chest. "I'm just..."

She approached the door. But she wasn't going to open it. Not yet. She was crying, and she couldn't let Corey see her.

No. She was the strong one.

_How do you explain this…feeling? This feeling of self-worthlessness…of self-hatred…_

Her small hand grabbed his hand above the door, though she was small and had to go on her tiptoes, her fingers just about touching his. And Corey felt those tiny fingers touching him, and a slight shockwave ran through his body.

There was so much going on in her head. So much she wanted to say. But she couldn't talk to Corey. She couldn't tell him her issues because most of it was her worrying about _him_. But...

Sallie pressed her forehead against the door, whimpering, her fingers desperately holding onto his.

"I'm just..." Her throat tightened. "Scared..."

Pushing his forehead again the door as well, Corey frowned more. He couldn't understand why Sallie was crying or understand the weight or situation of those tears, but he knew he had to be there for her right now. But that little demon on his shoulder told him to leave this world, that no one cared about him, that the world was a rotten place, and no one loved him.

But, that human contact, those tiny little fingers on his, made him wonder if that demon was correct. His mind was fuzzy, and he couldn't think right, but he tried.

"Scared?" He asked, "Of what?"

She heard his voice ripple through the door, and she shook hard. She _needed_ to tell him. She was so terrified that he would abandon her, that he would hate her just like everyone else...

There was the big major issue that prodded hard against her skull, one she knew she needed to tell…

"I'm homeless..."

Corey didn't understand at first, and he didn't say anything for a moment, his mind trying to figure out what she just said. And when the weight of the situation finally crashed down onto him, he was floored.

" _What?_ " He cried out, horrified. "Fuck... Sal... How long?" He asked, trying to get the answers he needed.

Sallie shivered.

"At least...two months now..."

His eyes widened in absolute distraught. His hand gripped the top of the stall tightly.

"Fuck, Sal... Why didn't you tell me?" He wasn't mad, just stunned. He was heartbroken.

The loud _clunk_! of the door unlocking emitted, and Sallie finally opened the door. Corey was despondent when they made eye-contact.

"I just....I just didn't think. I thought I could survive." She whimpered, and she looked at Corey, her eyes huge in grief, tearful.

She looked _destroyed_.

He didn't say anything for a moment, but he grabbed her and pulled her into a tight hug, his trembling hand stroking her hair, pressing his wet face and chest against his best friend.

"You can crash at my place." He said sympathetically, the smell of alcohol strong on his clothes. “Stay at mine as long as you need.”

Sallie needed that. She needed that so much, just _someone_ to give her reassurance of _something_...

Some balance in her life.

"Thank you." She sobbed weakly in his chest, latching her arms around him, her finger pulling and tearing at his clothes. "I was kicked out at Christmas…and I couldn’t bear to admit it.”

“But _why?_ ”

“I was…too scared. _Too proud…_ I don’t know, I just felt stupid-”

His hands rubbed her back, hushing her calmly and she stopped talking.

"You don't have to explain anything. Just know I am here for you."

The little woman choked against his chest.

"What's...what's wrong with me? My dad fucking rejects me and my mum killed herself...I can't lose anymore...anymore people..." Her grip got incredibly hard now. "No more...no more...I can't-!"

That was when she began to let loose, howling harder and washing the hatred out as she cried.

"No more, no more! I can't...I-Cant-lose-people-any-more!"

Corey listened, holding her tightly against his chest as Sallie squealed. He was so heartbroken, and he would prove to her that she was an amazing person.

“There is _nothing_ wrong with you.” Corey reassured, hushing her, his fingers brushing through her hair. “Fuck everyone. We have each other. We don't need them anyways." He confirmed.

Her arms held around his neck. She pulled the man down, holding his wet face against her neck and she buried her own into his, trying to run away from the world. Her only safe haven was _here_.

She was cold and shaking. The bathroom was icy.

"Just-Just don't leave me! I want-to..." She choked with emotion, shivering. "G-Go home..."

"Never leaving you, darling. I'm not that easy to get rid of." And then Corey pulled away a bit, rubbing his thumb underneath Sallie’s eyes, wiping her tears away. "Let's do that. Go home. _Our_ home."


	35. Precious

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains dark and sexual themes:  
> \+ Foreplay  
> \+ Masturbation  
> \+ Implied self-harm.  
> \+ Drug Use  
> \+ Dark thoughts  
> \+ Mention/Intention of rape  
> \+ IOWA being a dick

“Homeless?! For how fucking long?!”

“Two months…”

Despite being on the phone, Corey could feel Shawn covering his mouth, that horrified expression on his face.

“Fuck…why didn’t she say anything?”

“I don’t know…” Corey murmured with a shrug, sat hunched on the edge of his bed, the darkness always there. “She said she felt scared, and stupid. Probably too proud.” A small cynical smile pulled his lips. “She’s always been the one to make sure I was okay, but never cared for herself…Makes sense why she didn’t say anything, and why she’s been practically sofa-surfing at our places. She told me that she didn’t wanted to come back home after the argument, which I get…but, to be _kicked out_?”

“Corey, she could have been killed, or raped or _anything_ if she’s been living on the streets, and believe me, I know for a fact she had forced herself to do that.”

A deadly hesitation.

**_Told you so._ **

“I know.”

“I’m fucking glad she’s with you though. Is that why you guys left so suddenly?”

“Hmm.” Corey hummed, hugging himself and turned to the bathroom at the other end of the apartment. He could hear the shower going, knowing Sallie was in there. Sallie had showered plenty of times in his apartment, but it was so alien to hear her having such a _quiet_ shower. No music. No singing. It seemed almost as depressing as the current situation. “She never explained properly, but…I think _Scissors_ freaked her out.”

Shawn said nothing. He _knew_ the song freaked her out, through behind the eyes of the Clown mask, he had been watching her, and saw how for a moment she seemed so enchanted with Corey’s gruesome performance…but then she started to freak out, and breakdown. Shawn would have stopped if he could, but they all had to perform…

He felt guilty for not dropping his shit and hugging onto her. The last week he noticed a distinct decline in Sallie’s attitude, always so washed-out from life, like she was dying in the inside. And while Corey was exploiting his darkest desires and hatred on stage, she was just…

It made sense suddenly.

Shawn was affirmative in letting the other band-members know about Sallie’s situation, but not make such a big fuss over it. She was staying at Corey’s now, and probably will stay there forever knowing her. She was safe… _safe_ …

“With everything that’s going on in her head, it was probably the last straw that broke the camel’s back…” Shawn agreed sadly. “Look after her, Corey. And you _need_ to look after _you_. That means cutting that fucking addiction. If she ever found out…” Even someone like Shawn couldn’t bear the say those words, and Corey heard as the Clown’s voice shuddered, sounding so fragile swiftly, as if on the verge of crying. “She’d be fucking…ruined…”

A pause. Corey’s eyes dropped down to the dreadlocked mask beside him, looking at its void eyeholes and mouth. He ran his fingers over IOWA’s latex flesh. Shawn spoke again:

“She loves you, man. She really does.”

Corey only nodded, remembering the state she was in when he found her in the cubicles, how she clung onto him, expressing such adoration for him that no one ever had.

So why did he struggle to convince himself so…?

The shower continued to rain over Sallie. It was practically burning her skin.

She knew she was so cold. The temperature never changed in Corey’s apartment, both sharing the same perfect amount of heat. But this time, the water did not comfort her. It only made her flesh itch.

Impassively, Sallie rubbed her hands, not thinking of anything except the basic need of washing herself. She hasn’t stopped crying since the breakdown, and now her body was just drained from anything, numbed from emotion. Her eyes kept crying, but they didn’t hurt. She felt nothing, an endless void of emptiness in her head.

_I just want to sleep…_

_Sleep forever?_

Sallie stared at her feet, watching the dirtied water running down the bathtub and into the drain.

_Not sleep forever. I wanna be with Corey forever. Stay in his arms forever._

_But why? He’s clearly out of your league…_

_No, he’s the only happiness I have left. Him and the boys…_

_Even though he hurts?_

_Even though he hurts._

Now Sallie had sunk to the bottom of the bathtub, hugging herself, allowing the shower to downpour on her. Her head rested on her knees, she closed her eyes, feeling the water pelting on her sore back pleasantly, a gentle massage.

Grabbing Corey’s razer, to which he was kind enough to lend a new blade for her, Sallie began to brush the razer head up her legs, shaving, a small inkling of self-care she didn’t bother anymore. But she knew it would make her feel a _little_ better. Soaping her legs and armpits, she shaved silently, her mind roaming to nowhere.

_Wrist._

Sallie stared down at her small wrists, so clean and pure, untouched and unharmed.

_Is it true what they say? That people cut to feel again?_

Her eyes glanced at the razer, and back at her wrist. She was curious, _too curious_.

Placing the blade head directly over her blueish veins that stood beneath her soft skin, she pressed-

But not hard enough.

_You’re better than this._

She retracted the blade back, and suddenly threw it across the bathroom, as if bitten. Shaking hands covered her mouth, a tiny whimper escaping her as she tried to figure out what happened. Where that temptation came from? She had never felt such a compulsive urge to hurt herself-

A soft knocking on the door.

“Sal? You okay in there?”

Sallie gradually looked up to the door, knowing she hadn’t locked it. She never needed to. She trusted Corey so much.

“I…I don’t know…” She squeaked, falling for another breakdown. “Please come in…”

Corey was relieved to hear that. Opening the door, he approached his naked friend, seeing her looking so devastated and delicate, hugging herself with tears brimming her eyelashes. He grabbed a towel and held it open for her invitingly.

“Come here.”

She turned the shower off immediately, stepping out of the shower and clutched onto Corey desperately, not caring for the towel. Just that heavenly care from another. However, Corey wrapped her up securely, stroking her wet hair and hushed her ears kindly. “You’ve been fighting for so long.” Corey kissed her forehead. “Now you can rest.”

Sallie only whimpered, crumbling into a little feeble wounded kitten, and she kissed Corey’s neck, several times, desperately. Her best friend didn’t stop her. He enjoyed these kisses so much, always giving him a little inkling of life. And when he faced her, she kissed his lips hard before urgently pressing her face into his neck again. “My poor Virgin…” Corey whispered, his lips pressing in her wet hair. “Then again…I can’t even call you Virgin anymore, can I?”

Sallie felt his smirk in his voice, and she smiled weakly.

“Heh, true true…”

Corey nodded softly.

“Looks like you’ll have to downgrade to _Easyjet_ , because you’re so fucking easy to get wet. _Easywet_ -!”

Sallie punched his gut playfully, winding the man lightly. But he caught her smiling more, supressing a giggle. After Corey recovered from the blow, he cupped Sallie’s face and made her look up to him. Sallie missed his dreadlocks so much, and her eyes looked saddened for a moment when she saw them gone again, a bitter reminder.

Her hands reached up for his skull and brushed her fingers over the velvety graze of hairs on his skull. “I’ll grow it out again, don’t worry.” Corey reassured her, knowing what she was mourning over.

“I just loved them so much…”

“I know…I know you do.” Leaning down, Corey pecked her nose lightly. “But at least IOWA has dreadlocks.”

“True…” Sallie nodded once, lowering her face down and resting her cheek on his chest, feeling the warmth there. Corey patted her hair, his arms holding her against him and he slowly rocked her. He watched as Sallie shut her eyes, and it was the most peace he has ever seen Sallie at. She was almost falling asleep there.

“Let’s go to bed.” Corey whispered, running a hand through her wet hair. “Tomorrow we’ll do some shopping for you. Buy you new clothes, more food. Maybe a few nice things for this place…now that there’s gonna be a woman’s touch to this damn place.”

Sallie nodded sleepily.

“I’ll make sure to get you some _My Little Pony_ bedding and pyjamas,”

“Do that, and I’ll lock you in the kitchen and force you to make me sandwiches, woman.”

“If you wanna die quicker, either from knives or food poisoning.” Sallie weakly snickered, spying the cheeky glint in Corey’s eyes. She stood on her tip-toes, pecking Corey’s jaw lightly with another kiss. “Let’s sleep. I’m fucking exhausted.”

“Of course.”

Turning the lights off, Corey cradled Sallie to his bedroom, fetching some clean shorts and a _Metallica_ shirt for her to wear. Having only one set of underwear, Sallie’s bra and panties were left drip-drying in the bathroom for that night, but Sallie was okay. She felt this indescribable comfort and trust with Corey, and finally felt no fear in him seeing her naked.

It’s not like he hasn’t seen her naked before…

Corey removed his shirt and jeans, only clad in his boxer-shorts and watched Sallie getting dressed.

_You’re fucking lucky to have her…_

Shawn’s words, and at that moment, Corey was slowly convincing himself that, yes, he _was_ lucky.

When the little Brit finished getting dressed, she tucked herself under the bedsheet and immediately shuffled against him.

“Jesus, Sal, you addicted to me or something?” Corey chuckled, flippantly.

“Yes.”

He wasn’t expecting that. But Corey smiled, watching Sallie nuzzling her face against his chest. “You make me feel better. _All_ the time.”

_Thank you…_

Tenderly, Corey brought the bedsheet over them, hiding them both from the world.

* * *

Sallie was completely out of it. Drained from all thought and emotion, she splayed on the bed, lying on her front, legs poised out, star-fishing. She had attempted to roll out of bed the first few hours, sleeping restlessly. Though luckily, Corey was awake this whole time.

He couldn’t sleep.

Not only did he wanted to make sure that his best friend was asleep and safe, but that distinct urgency came back to him. It was an addiction he was starving his brain from the last few days, but each time it came back to him, it was far stronger, grabbing at every will he had inside of him.

Corey sat on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands, elbows on his knees as he shut his eyes, trying to block out the voices.

**_Do it._ **

_No._

**_Just one snort. One tiny line…_ **

_I can’t. No. She is here._

**_She’s fucking asleep. Away with the fucking fairies. She won’t know._ **

_She will. She will and she’ll hate me!_

**_She won’t hate ME. She’ll hate YOU…_ **

_I’m cutting it out. For her. I can’t lose her._

**_No, you can’t. She’s too PRECIOUS-!_ **

Gradually, Corey stood up, standing lank in the darkness in the middle of the night. The entire apartment was blackened, but he knew this building by heart. Head hanging low, he stared at the floor.

He heard Sallie shuffling, and dismayed, his head snapped around, seeing that she was simply moving in her sleep, now lying on her side. He could see her breasts beneath his shirt, soft and yielding, like marshmallows.

**_Fuck her. It’ll be fun. RAPE HER. Take her! TAKE HER! TAKE HER! SHE’S PRECIOUS! SHE’S MINE!_ **

_No!_

**_Then take a hit. It’ll stop this urgency; it’ll stop ALL of this. I promise you._ **

_No, it won’t._

**_Then HURT her. Look at her, she’s so innocent and precious. EASY TARGET._ **

Corey looked away abruptly, covering his eyes with his hands.

_Stop it…stop it…stop it…_

**_You know what stopped this before?_ **

Staggering, Corey walked towards the living room, swaying as if drunk. He knew what needed to be done. He knew he needed to do this to not hurt Sallie. Collapsing onto the floor, hunched by the ruined coffee table, Corey looked at the floor. Flipping the thin, scraggly corner of the carpet over, his fingers gripped onto the edge of a wooden floorboard and he tore it up, like he has done many times before. And in the small pit was a little wooden box. Corey snatched it from the pit frantically, opening it now with shaking, excited hands.

Between his finger and thumb was a small bag of white powder.

**_Come to Daddy!_ **

He rammed the floorboard back into place, skewed and sticking up slightly, but it didn’t matter. Immediately, he hurried to the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

Blue moonlight filtered through the bathroom’s frosty window. He was getting agitated now.

His trembling fingers opened the small bag, powdering a white thick line over the edge of the sink.

**_GIMMEGIMMEGIMMEGIMMEGIMMEGIMMEGIMME-!_ **

Plugging one nostril, Corey eagerly bent his head down and snorted the powder line into his nose. He straightened up suddenly and let out a low growl, his body shuddering and he frantically rubbed his nose with his palm.

“Fuck…that’s it…a little…pick-me-up…” He murmured, pupils dilating.

**_It’s not enough. ANOTHER._ **

Without arguing, Corey quickly formed another line with the remaining powder, hurriedly snorting it up and threw his head back, shaking hard with another low growl. Blood began to trickle down his nose, but he didn’t notice.

“Fuck…fuck yeah…that’s it…”

**_Better now, aren’t we?_ **

He ran his tongue over the sink edge, licking up the remaining residue of the powder, overwhelmed. Flushing the little bag down the toilet, discarding the evidence and Corey stood in the centre of the bathroom, dazed, head tilting back. The blood ran down his chin and neck. His words and thoughts so crisp and sharp, his mentality riding the high he had been trying to hold back.

**_Come look at her! Come look at her!_ **

Dazedly, Corey stumbled towards the bedroom, following his excited thoughts. Once he reached the bedroom, he stood at the end of the bed, head rolling to the side and he watched his best friend sleep so peacefully, so oblivious to what he had just committed.

_So cute. So innocent._

**_She is all mine._ **

Corey’s eyes stared vacantly at her, taking in the details of her slumbering body. She was so comfortable, her legs spread as if she was paused in mid-running, her arms folded beneath her head. Like a frozen piece of art, a porcelain doll, she slept so amiably. Sleeping beauty. It was like a fevered dream Corey had once before.

_I wanna touch her-_

**_No. Don’t._ **

_But you said-_

**_I changed my mind. WATCH HER._ **

_Watch her…_

**_Put me on…_ **

Corey’s eyes slid darkly towards the mask that was propped against the corner of the room on top of his dresser.

Sallie curled in a small foetus position, undisturbed. The blanket was skilfully removed from her body, and she didn’t seem to have noticed.

Corey loved how calm and content she looked, how she deserved all this tranquillity.

IOWA, on the other hand, was admiring how the shorts clung onto the back of her thighs, the shirt slightly riding up, flashing a teaser to him as if silently flirting. How he loved her so much…

On silent feet, IOWA stood at one side of the bed, his head hanging, dreadlocks slightly swaying. He was completely naked, black face-paint staining his chest and neck from where he painted, putting on new flesh over his old body. He wanted to feel. He wanted to _feel again_.

With one hand, IOWA grabbed onto his cock, which was slowly throbbing between his fingers, the longer he stared fixated on the harmless female body the harder he felt himself becoming.

She wasn’t even doing anything, and IOWA knew he could jack off at the sight of her. She didn’t even speak, or _look_ at him, and yet the masked monster was already hooked to the sight, driven by his consumed drug, his mind was so crisp. She was his aphrodisiac. It was like staring at an angel, a _fallen_ angel, which graced her presence in his hell-bound room and was there for the taking, a sacrifice for him. Through darkened eyes, he was watching his precious little thing sleep, unaware of his presence.

And sometimes that was okay with him.

His black-stained fingers reached for her face, and they hovered there for a time, almost hesitate in touching her.

_She’ll die under your touch._

**_No, she won’t._ **

His fingertips touched her forehead, and she didn’t move.

Intensely, he stared at her lips, fleshy and kissable. Soft and tranquil…how her eyeball seemed to move beneath her delicate eyelids as she sleepwalked through her dreams. She was so cute. IOWA almost couldn’t handle it. He never had a silent moment like this to appreciate this little dove. IOWA could see her pulse beneath her jugular. His dilated pupils widened at the sight of it. Appreciate the little life she had inside of her. So thriving.

She looked so _willing_.

Leaning back slightly, he held his hand out at her, posing his hand and focused on it. Through his eyes, his hand looked so huge compared to her, and he slowly wrapped his fingers around her sleeping body, wanting to grab her, wanting to hold her like a tiny doll. He wanted to hold his small precious being against his chest, hands holding her, pushing her hard inside of his chest, _so hard_ , she would phase through it…

His mind seized.

That made no sense…

Gradually, his hand dropped, and he faintly resumed back to reality, seeing her small sleeping body there.

His thumb softly brushed against the top of his cock, pinching the tip of the hot head and clenching his teeth.

_She looks so divine there. So sublime and amazing. How she makes me feel._

**_You make her feel the same way._ **

_Oh, I know…_

His fingers slowly wrapped around his cock and began to slowly rub up and down, his head becoming a giggly fit of drugs and arousal.

**_I’ve got to protect her. I’ve got to keep her safe from everyone._ **

_KILL HER STEPMOM._

**_No, not yet. Focus on her. Focus on your little sin…_ **

IOWA whimpered behind his mask, his bruised black lips bleeding as he wanted to cry for her. She was just so delicate. He would cry so hard for her, taken back in how blameless and treasured she was to him! His back tilted slightly, hips pushed forward as his other hand reached for his lips, the same fingers that he touched her forehead with, and he began to suck on them, trying to suck the taste of her skin off his fingers.

_I want her. I want ALL of her._

**_And you do. She’s there for the taking._ **

_But she’ll run away from me. They ALL run away from me!_

**_If she runs, you will find her. Slide up behind her and take her._ **

Now, his cock was fully erected, hot to the touch and ready. He began to jerk himself faster, urgently. Groping his balls with his other hand, he squeezed them hard, trying to stop himself from getting an orgasm too soon, dragging this as long as he could. His panting was sharp in his mask, dreadlocks shaking at his aggressive masturbation.

“Ahh, fucking you will be mine…” IOWA grilled under his breath, a dizzy spell struck him hard and suddenly almost losing his balance. He caught himself against the wall, shaking. And in the midst of his haze, he spluttered lyrics to himself, his own little poem. IOWA’s love song.

_“Even if you run, I will find you/I decided I wanted you_

_Now I know, I need/If you can't be bought, tougher than I thought_

_Keep in mind, I’m with you/Never left out fate, can't concentrate_

_Even if you run…”_

Forcing himself back up, he released his cock, and fully faced her.

**TAKE HER.**

_Careful. She is far too perfect…_

To his surprise, IOWA was careful. The urge to just simply take her was _there_. But it would be too easy. He can’t afford to break her.

IOWA approached the side of the bed, and through tremors, he bent down to the sleeping beauty, pressing his bloodied lips on her forehead. He kissed her lightly, as carefully as possible, dragging his lips over her temples and cheeks. The dreadlocks brushed against her collarbone and chest, and it was enough to wake her up.

Seeing the vines in the dark, Sallie shuffled and laid on her back, looking up to see Corey with his mask on. She cocked a brow sleepily.

“What are you doing, Corey?” Sallie whimpered, watching as IOWA pressed his face into her neck, smelling that fresh smell of soap, inhaling her smell. His little baby. Feeling his teeth lightly pinching her throat, Sallie shifted a little more. “Hey…when did this come up?” She murmured softly, but she was smiling, feeling IOWA’s dirtied hands running up her chest and grabbing her shoulders, holding her down. Vaguely, she realised he was naked, seeing his cock between them. “Corey?”

“IOWA.” Her masked friend hissed, pressing his face into her ear and pushing his tongue inside of her ear. The hot, wet invasion made Sallie stiffen, shivering, a small mew of excitement roused from her lips.

“Oh…” She grinned dirtily. “You’re…fucking horny suddenly?”

“Yes.”

Sallie was already falling for it. It was rather a nice surprise to be woken up by manic kisses from him. Normally, it would be the other way around. But she wasn’t complaining.

Unexpectedly, Sallie pushed IOWA off her, sitting up on the bed, her eyes stunning in the darkness, locking onto him with equal possessiveness.

“You’re lucky I feel okay.” Sallie murmured, the incident back at _Hotel California_ seemed to have numbed out of her mind. “I love it how you touch me.”

IOWA wanted to reply, but like a passionate fan, he didn’t know what to do. Hyperventilating. He could only grin, uncontrollably, watching as this beautiful creature pressed herself against him, giving herself to him. Surrendering herself for him.

He watched as this seraph shuffled to the edge of the bed, her eyes looking at him daintily, and he felt her small hands grabbing his cock, surging a terrible adrenaline rush, the drugs and arousal blanking his mind. IOWA tilted his head back, snarling under his breath, his teeth dark and glistened in the dark like a nightmare.

“I want to _break_ you.”

“Now, that wouldn’t be very smart,” Sallie cooed kindly, her gentle hands stroking his shaft. Her gorgeous eyes looked down, inspecting his cock.

_Is it even good enough for her?_

“Do you want it?” IOWA groaned, his pelvis slightly thrusting, watching his cock push through her interlaced fingers, adoring the softness of her flesh touching him. His cold hand groped the top of her head, running his palm down her damp hair, looking down from his chest. “Tell me you want it.”

“I want it.” Came the soft purr, and IOWA had to control his breathing from that small comment. But when he felt her kissing the tip of his cock, he practically flinched away, snatching away from her. The sensitivity from it was unspeakable. When he looked up and mirrored Sallie’s wide eyes, he panicked, rushing and grabbing her skull in his shaking hands.

“It’s okay! It’s okay! IOWA’s okay!” He gasped, full of panic. He read the concern in Sallie’s eyes.

“ _Are_ you okay, Corey-?”

IOWA slapped his hand over Sallie’s mouth, the panic gone, and replaced it was fury.

“ _IOWA!_ ” He corrected sternly, and Sallie’s eyes filled with worry. IOWA regurgitated back to freaking out. “It’s okay! It’s okay, shh-shh-shh!” He shakily placed his fingers over her plump lips, pillows, delicately tracing over them as if he feared he broke them.

Sallie opened her mouth, noticing the weird actions. It unnerved her slightly, even in her sleep-fog, she felt a little-

“IOWA….” She carefully spoke, facing Corey as his _Slipknot_ persona. “You okay?”

“Yes. Yes, quite fine!” IOWA gasped, nodding frantically as his palms cupped her cheeks. So warm, so _soft_ -

**_I want to bite onto their soft gumminess…_ **

“So soft…so soft…so soft…”

Now IOWA was chanting, his thumbs rubbing circles on Sallie’s freshly washed cheeks. But Sallie let him by peacefully. She was trying to examine him. Examine this IOWA…

Sure, Corey did some dumb and daft things to her, but with the way this masked man was acting, it was like another person. _Very well done_ , but…

IOWA squished Sallie’s cheeks up, and when his head lowered down slightly, his eyes level with her, he tilted her head back.

Her lips shimmered in the moonlight, marble and beautiful.

Sallie was almost thrown back when IOWA suddenly pressed his lips hungrily upon hers, his black lips meshing with hers. Smiling shyly against his lips, she placed her hands on his shoulders.

_So delicate, so gentle._

**_Such tiny fingers. I wanna eat them up._ **

Pushing her back onto the bed, IOWA hovered over her, his lips smacking wetly against hers, tasting her slowly for a time, before he got a little more destructive, kissing harder, his tongue running inside of her mouth.

“I wanna fuck you…I wanna fuck you…”

“You haven’t even taken me out on a date, moron,” Sallie cooed softly, playfulness in her tone.

But IOWA read mockery. She was grinning at him, _laughing_ at him.

And when he clamped his teeth hard at her neck, the little woman squeaked in surprise, feeling his dirty teeth piercing in her neck, harder, _harder_ , a desperate, disgusting snarl hissing through his biting teeth as his hands scrambled down to his cock and began jerking himself promptly again.

Sallie’s little fingers dug into his arms, at first to stop him. But soon she eased, her hands pulling away and tucked themselves between her breasts, feeling the masked man ravish her throat.

Gradually, he pulled away, tugging at her neck and when it popped out of his lips, he looked down at his little mess. It was blackened-red, his teeth so strong and dark against the rosy-red of his bite. And when she looked back at him-

**_I want to wear your face._ **

“IOWA…” Sallie sighed, so dreamily. Abruptly, drastically, IOWA hunched down, his arms surrounding and cradling her skull.

“I want _all_ your babies…”

That made Sallie stir uncomfortably.

“IOWA…you’re scaring me.”

Horrified, IOWA hushed her impatiently.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

“Just…” Sallie lifted her hand and touched his lips through his mask. “Just…love me.”

“Oh god, I’m ready now…” IOWA whispered, his eyes pleading for forgiveness. “I wanna love you now…”

“Be. Gentle.”

That command struck through the masked menace, and for a long moment he simply stared at Sallie, a little stunned, almost disgusted.

“I don’t-don’t _want_ to be gentle-!”

“P-Please.” Sallie begged, holding his face. “I can’t…do…rough right now. No, I can’t-”

“But I wanna fuck you reckless! I wanna fucking _rape you!_ ”

Her small hand, to his horror, grabbed his jaw and pinched it _hard_.

“ _Stop it!_ ”

Like a charred angel, her voice was high, and stressed his insides.

IOWA halted, closing his eyes hard and taking several deep breaths. “You’re scaring me, Corey. This isn’t funny…please. I just want a cuddle.”

**_Cuddle?! A fucking cuddle?!_ **

Sallie watched as IOWA physically shook hard, an appalling wrath in his eyes began to grow, flaring. He then pulled away from Sallie, glaring at her in utter disgust. Erection still hard, he turned and sat at the edge of the bed, arms folded and was pouting angrily at the wall.

Wounded, Sallie didn’t know how to take it. Her body was just simmering in that feral heat for his touch. But the way he acted, those words he said…

She thought about simply going back to bed…but she was so riled up, she couldn’t just go back to sleep like that. Instead, she carefully slipped out of the bed, watching IOWA.

He didn’t move. He remained still, fuming silently.

Avoiding eye-contact, feeling washed with cold hurting, she stepped out of the bed and walked around the bed, purposely avoiding going in front of IOWA, and walked through the doorway, approaching the kitchen. The little Brit decided to distract herself with a drink of water, now becoming parched from that brief arousing moment. Even with her back turned to him, she knew he was watching her, in the dark…

She should turn the light on.

IOWA’s eyes locked onto her, full of ice.

**_I see you in the dark, I see you all the way, I see you in the light, I see you plain as day…_ **

Picking at the skin around her fingernail, Sallie tried to calm herself down once she finished her water.

But a piece of blackness moved, and when she looked to the doorway, IOWA was suddenly there, naked, looking too big for the doorway.

Sallie seized on the spot, like a deer in headlights.

“Cuddle.” IOWA commanded, and just as Sallie tried to register what he said, IOWA was now before her, his arms outstretched. The little Brit stammered, but IOWA suddenly swallowed her up in his arms and pulled her against his chest, his fingers delicately running through her hair. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” A little giggle slipped out of his lips. “Stay. Stay. Yes, my little white rabbit. I will cuddle you.”

“Umm…”

Determinedly, IOWA pulled Sallie back to the bedroom, lifting her small body from the ground and held her against his chest, uncomfortably tight, like a ragdoll.

“We’ll cuddle. We’ll cuddle. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

Sallie opened her mouth to speak but decided it would be safe to say nothing. She was still bemused with this personality change. But she concluded that it was the drink doing this. Though…he had never been so _weird_ before…

IOWA pulled Sallie to the bed with him, sitting her on his lap and pulling her down on top of him as he laid back, his eyes sinking deeper in his mask. “That’s nice…” He murmured, holding her, stroking her back. “Yes…that’s nice…” Another dumb giggle fell from his lips. His best friend was too scared to move, hearing the words fall from his mouth like a child…

Slowly, she placed her head onto his chest and closed her eyes, just waiting for him to relax. The bedroom was warm enough to keep them comfortable, no bedsheet was needed. And when IOWA began to snore noisily, Sallie knew it was safe to relax. His arms still clamped her hard against his body, but after shifting a bit here and there, she managed to lie securely on him. Though she watched him for a moment, judging his movements.

_IOWA…_


	36. The Nightmare before Valentines

Sallie woke up with a terrified jolt, her mind so certain she was in grave danger.

Suddenly, she was struggling to breathe, feeling incredibly hot, a severe pressure holding her down-

The thick musty vines draped over her face, suffocating her. And promptly, she recognised the scent and coarse texture. Blinking against them, Sallie brushed the dreadlocks of IOWA away from her face, seeing that the masked menace on top of her. He was still naked, his lean body hunched over Sallie, arms cradling her head too tightly. He was obsessively holding her in his sleep, like a distraught child with its favourite plushie, and was unable to bear the thought of sleep without said plushie.

Sallie bit the corner of her lip. She knew she needed to move, but when she saw the sleeping form of IOWA on top of her, she had to consider her movements very carefully. She hadn’t forgotten how he acted last night, and Sallie was just praying that it was Corey and the alcohol talking, or it was part of what was supposed to be _very_ good foreplay…

Though a part of her was not convinced it was either of those. There was something too alien about the way he acted, so eccentric that it even unnerved her.

_Fuck, I need a pee…_

Calculating her movements, _very carefully_ , Sallie began to shuffle calmly, small little movements, inching away so that she was trying to lie IOWA on his side. The dreadlocks tangled against her throat.

_Take his mask off. Dumbass fell asleep with it on…_

Meticulously, Sallie’s small hands reached behind his head, finding the twin belts and began to cautiously unbuckle them.

She barely managed to register IOWA’s eyes opening and suddenly snatching at her hands, making her squeak in panic. But when the masked man realised who it was, and _where_ he was, his hard gaze softened.

“Baby?!”

_Baby?!_

“Morning,” Sallie spoke softly, trying to not look like she had a mini heart-attack. IOWA’s grasps relaxed, his lean hands soon releasing her wrists and grabbing her hands instead, meshing his fingers between hers. “I didn’t mean to spook you like that.”

IOWA gave her a tired smile, almost ashamed. He didn’t reply, which concerned Sallie for a moment. But maybe he was simply still waking up. “I was just going to take your mask off. You fell asleep with it on.”

When Sallie went to pull away, IOWA gripped her hands harder.

“When will I see you again?” He asked, sounding so desperate.

IOWA spied the confusion in Sallie’s eyes as she tried to figure out what he meant by such a comment. But playing along, as it seemed to be the safest option, Sallie smiled affectionately.

“Soon. I promise you.”

IOWA smiled back. A genuine smile, and it touched her heart. She hasn’t seen Corey smile like that in a long time…

“Good. Good.” He nodded, relieved. “I don’t _ever_ wanna lose you.”

“And you won’t.” She reassured him kindly, leaning up and kissing his lips, which were a murky black now. And hungrily, he kissed her back. “Okay, I really need to pee.”

“I wanna watch.”

Sallie forced a giggle.

“Don’t be gross.” But IOWA looked like he was incredibly serious. Her giggle faltered. “C’mon,” She added softly, reaching for his belts again. IOWA snatched at her wrists again.

“I can do it.” Came the stern comment, before he added in a calmer tone: “One last kiss goodnight?”

_Play along. Corey is REALLY getting into this._

When IOWA saw that small woman smile so sweet, so daintily, he felt himself die so passionately for her, as if his own crippled heart couldn’t take her sugary sweetness. He pressed his face down onto her, his lips kissing her slowly this time, each kiss was warm, drawn, obsessive in each peck. The moment last for a while, and then IOWA studied her face one more time, and he rolled off her, allowing her to get out of the bed. He watched her gracefully get out, like something from a movie. Despite her every action looking so mundane to the normal person, IOWA could see the elegance in every single movement she took. He could watch her walk all day…

Sallie glanced back at IOWA, watching him lying on his side on the bed, his fingers creepily moving, slowly, in a sinister gesture of waving, and Sallie shook her head with a smile, turning back and was finally in the bathroom.

The instant she was away, IOWA whimpered, his hands clutching onto his skull and began to push his head into the mattress, grunting, the balls of his feet digging into the bed.

“Bastard. Bastard. Bastard, _stop it!_ ” He whined against the pillows, the belts loosening in trembling hands and with a frantic pull, Corey pulled the mask off, gasping for air.

The world felt bright and dizzy quickly.

“Fuck…” He panted, tilting his head back. The IOWA mask was gripped in his dirty fingers, and with a snarl he threw the mask across the room, hearing the slap of the latex smacking the wall and falling onto the dresser.

Corey dragged himself to the edge of the bed, his head now conscious of what he had done yesterday.

_Fuck…she’s gonna kill me…_

Wanting to cry so much suddenly, Corey pressed his face into his hands and sat there. And yet no tears of remorse came to him. The utter sorrow was there, bottling up, but he didn’t cry for some reason.

But then again, he didn’t _want_ to cry. If Sallie found him crying, she’d be asking questions and-

“Corey?”

Corey looked up from his hands, his eyes and mouth in strained black face-paint as he saw Sallie standing there, leaning against the doorframe. She was smiling, so sweetly. “You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, just tired.” He yawned at that thought, but he knew he was lying to himself. He knew he wasn’t okay…

Sallie approached him and sat on the bed beside him, grabbing his head and pulling his face against her chest, hugging him.

“I can’t thank you enough for everything.” Sallie whispered, making the singer look up in confusion.

“For everything?”

“Being my best friend.” Sallie replied, kissing his head without thinking. “For always having my back. And…for allowing me to stay at yours.”

“Hey.” Pulling away from her chest, he pulled Sallie into another hug and nuzzled his face into her hair. “I always wanted a roommate.”

The best friends held into each other for a few long moments, and as Sallie nestled into his chest smiling, Corey wasn’t. He was still horrified by what he had done.

His addiction.

He knew he needed to do something about it, otherwise Sallie would disown him and-

“Let’s get breakfast.” Sallie mewed subtly, rubbing his back, and it drew Corey back to reality.

“Yeah, yeah.”

* * *

“Oh, isn’t this just adorable?!”

Liv practically snatched Sallie away from where she was staring at the CD store she first met Corey outside of work, the memory of it still living strongly, and Liv’s excitement reminded Sallie to fix onto the present, and not the past.

Sallie grumbled a reply that was incoherent as she watched Liv and Barbie drag her to a card shop.

 _Merle Hay Mall_ , as expected, was decorated according to the occasion, and February was infamously the month of Valentine’s Day. Pink and red paper hearts hung at every shop they walked past, banners of roses and petal stickers stuck against the glass windows of the stores. There were even large crafted paper hearts and roses hanging overhead at the high ceiling.

Sallie was a secret romantic, and unlike her fellow sisters with her right now, she hid that side of her. She was always ashamed of it, hiding it because she preceded it as being ‘weak’. A fault. Besides, no one really had spent Valentine’s Day with her, so while she internally gets excited over the day, she herself never really experienced it.

_Maybe I could do something for Corey this year?_

_Don’t be fucking creepy. You don’t even know him for a year!_

_Yeah, but we’ve fucked._

And for once, that inner demon had no comeback, and Sallie felt a small piece of her returning. It probably helped that, since Liv and Barbie were now fully aware of her situation, despite not directly speaking of it, they made her feel better. She knew the _Slipknot_ circle were conscious of her circumstances back at home, and none of them made a huge fuss over it, which was relieving for Sallie. She didn’t want to be constantly reminded that she failed as a daughter.

The most they have all done were sent her kind, heartfelt text messages offering their friendship and support to her if she ever needed them.

She had her own family to take care of now.

Each text message her father said requesting where she was, evidently worried, Sallie would respond with a simple _‘With friends’_ or _‘With Corey and the boys.’_ So, she was still giving him indication that she was alive and okay, but never enough to tell him _where_. Last thing she needed was his wife to hunt her down and humiliate her in front of her new friends.

_I miss you dad…_

_But you’re still so very very pissed off…_

“Sallie, look how cute this is!” Now Barbie was squealing, her hands pressed against the glass of the card shop, and behind it was a giant fox plush, with too-big eyes, doe-like, ridiculous. Sure, it was cute, but something even Sallie wasn’t too into. She preferred the roses and the hearts and the romance sentiments. Barbie loved her plushies, she loved the candy hearts and cute cuddly dolls. And Liv…she just simply adored everything.

It was truly inspiring almost, how two grown women were cooing and awing at the romantic festivities without a care in the world, how their happiness was practically sparkling from them and Sallie could _feel_ their joy, and she wanted to feel like that. She wanted to express herself like that so much.

Maybe she could…so why was she so scared? Perhaps because she had spent most of her life being laughed at for simply being human, and it seemed much easier to close herself…

But when Corey was around, she felt that she could be herself again, slowly opening up, and it was thanks to him that Sallie seemed a little more enlightened in being herself, even around people she knew for a while. Sallie had only known Liv and Barbie at the start of the year, a month and so, and there was this outrageous sensation of comfortable happiness she felt with them.

Sallie walked with Liv as Barbie pressed her nose against the glass window, looking at the fox plushie longingly.

“So, have you even asked Mick out yet?” Sallie asked eventually, watching Barbie falter.

“N-No, not yet.” Barbie hung her head down slightly, her chocolate-brown locks rolling down her shoulders. “I’ve been so scared…”

“Maybe you can confess your love to him next week!” Liv suggested, nudging Sallie with a wink, and Sallie registered what Liv was trying to attempt.

“Oh yeah, totally.” Sallie agreed, folding her arms. Thankfully, Sallie had a fresh wardrobe on today. Corey had brought her to the mall a few days ago to pick out clothes, and now she contently stood with black jeans, a fresh _KoRn_ t-shirt and, of course, Corey’s hoodie. Corey didn’t like how old and rugged it looked on her and had tried to convince her getting a new one. But like the moron she was, Sallie insisted in keeping his old hoodie. She had grown so fond of it; it was incredibly sentimental to her.

But today, Sallie was a completely new person, fresh clothes, clean body and hair, just that damn hoodie and those grungy boots…but Corey will eventually get her out of those two things! He even insisted in trying to buy a dress for Sallie, and his reply was a sharp, warning laugh.

Sallie didn’t wear dresses, it seems…

“I don’t know…” Barbie replied softly, rubbing the back of her neck. “I want to show him how much I really like him, but I don’t want to be creepy.”

“You won’t be the only one to feel that way,” Sallie reassured, knowing damn well she was one of those who felt the same way. “We’ll look around, and if anything crops up, we’ll help one another.”

Liv suddenly faced Sallie.

“Does this mean you’re gonna confess your love to Corey?”

Sallie shot a horrified stare, one that made it seem like she was caught red-handed.

“Uhh, ‘confessing my love’ is a _little_ dramatic, isn’t it?”

“Not at all!” Liv piped up, smiling brightly. “C’mon, you guys are so made for each other.”

“Y-Yeah?! Well, so are you and Jim! Ha!”

“You dummy, that’s because we’re _together_!” Liv laughed, knowing Sallie’s comeback was pathetic. “C’mon ladies, let’s go inside and have a look. See if there is anything in store for us.”

Together, the three ladies walked inside of the card shop. Barbie was already skipping towards the corner where all of the teddies sat on small, plastic shelves, eyeing them up dreamily. Liv already knew what she wanted. She was after a card-making set. Personally, she was more of an artist, and wanted to create something for Jim instead. Sallie had to admit, it was a good idea, one that she may even take on.

Distracting herself, Sallie walked towards the valentine’s card section, eyeing up the cards, seeing if anything spoke her feelings for Corey.

_Maybe I should try it out this year-_

_What if it becomes fucking awkward, and you’ll lose him, and he’ll leave you-_

Sallie was blanking that thought. Her optimism for today seemed to be able to block out the negative thoughts, and today felt a little easier on the mind and heart.

She reached out for a card, black and red, the colours that attracted her the most, and she looked at the cover, smirking slightly:

**_I can’t be bothered with this Valentine’s stuff. Fancy a fuck?_ **

Sallie cocked a brow.

That could work, but she wanted something a little more serious. This wasn’t a time to joke about her actual feelings for the man. But she will keep this card in mind, maybe pass it as a joke and see how Corey reacts to it. She tucked the card under her arm and looked around for more.

**_Despite the fact that you’re a grumpy twat, I like you._ **

Sallie smirked this time.

_Fucking hell, this speaks out so much._

But it seemed too silly. Shaking her head in faint amusement, she placed the card back on the shelf.

“Hey Sal, you found anything?” Liv called out, who was gazing at the candle section. She had already obtained a few Yankee candles.

“They’re funny, but…I want something a little more serious.” Sallie replied, picking up another card.

“What does that one say?”

“ _Valentines. Thank you for being my weirdo. X._ ”

“That screams you and Corey!”

“Fuck off!”

Liv giggled impishly, hurrying away before Sallie grabbed the nearest thing and threw it at her teasing friend. But Sallie chuckled and placed the card back down. A part of her was intent on getting a comical valentine’s card. She had a feeling that Corey would appreciate it anyway, now that Jodie was finally gone. But then again, she wanted to actually _admit_ her feelings.

_Isn’t it a bit dangerous though?_

_I don’t know, but I feel pretty good about it._

Sallie searched for more.

**_I love you. Which is amazing as I hate everyone._ **

**_Valentines. I licked you. You are mine now._ **

**_I might have a dirty mind, but its only ever you’re running through it. (Naked obviously!)_ **

They were all so good, few even made Sallie snicker to herself. But then she realised perhaps being a bit more serious would work out better for what she was after.

_Fuck sake!_

“Are you okay there, ma’am?”

Sallie heard the voice of the staff-member and she looked up to him, smiling softly.

“Yeah, just having a gander.” Came the recited reply she would give to any staff-member that approached her.

The young man tilted his head to the side, his eyes squinting slightly. A goth boy. Long slim face, but he was tall and slender, having the same body-type as Jim. He was possibly the same height as Corey. Violet long hair fell to his shoulder-blades, symmetrical and flawless. His eyes had heavy black make-up, black eyeline around his small eyes.

When Sallie noticed the strange look he was giving, he spoke.

“I think I’ve seen you before.”

Which was bizarre, because Sallie was getting a strange niggly feeling that she had seen his face before too.

“I think?” Sallie murmured, completely facing him now.

“Did you go to _Stairways?_ ”

_Stairways? How precise…_

“Yeah…” Sallie said at a length, her tone suggesting that she was understanding him but was still confused.

“You’re always with that guy with the dreadlocks. Oh, and Shawn from that band.” He clicked his fingers, shutting his eyes tightly as he tried to recall the name.

_Everyone fucking knows Shawn! He’s like Des Moines’ celebrity!_

Sallie decided to help.

“ _Slipknot._ ”

“Ah yes! _Slipknot!_ ” He piped up excitingly, giving Sallie a friendly smile. “Yes, I remember you. You were the one that knocked Jodie out.”

That surprised Sallie. And with a nervous, tight smile, one that held almost no pride in her violence, she spoke:

“Oh yeah…that was me…”

“No, don’t be ashamed!” He cried out, grabbing Sallie’s arms firmly. “That bitch had fucked with so many of our heads, and I’m just glad that you weren’t intimidated by her.”

_To be fair, I WAS intimidated. I just snapped…_

Regardless, Sallie shrugged.

“She just pushed the wrong person.” Sallie simply said. “She had been ruining people too many times. And when she was fucking about with Corey, I couldn’t take it anymore.” She frowned. “Sometimes I get mad at myself for not ‘being responsible’, but at the same time I do not. Fucking. Regret it.”

“Good on you! Seriously. She seemed to have backed down on the ‘To-Do’ list of people.” The man said, bursting out laughing, and it caught Barbie’s and Liv’s attention. “Sorry, since I heard about the incident, I wanted to meet the hero herself! And, not gonna lie, I was surprised it was a woman that fucking knocked her out.”

This felt weirdly pleasant to Sallie. She assumed she would have been shamed for what she did, but people seem to praise her for it. It wasn’t always the best way to deal with terrible people, but maybe this was her one-chance she was off the hook.

“Thank you. I’m glad.”

The goth teen held his hand out to Sallie and flashed another smile.

“I’m Jack!”

And Sallie smiled back, grabbing his hand and shaking it.

“I’m Sallie.”

Jack’s eyes widened in glee, almost a little too excitingly.

“Ahh! How awesome! It’s like the _Nightmare Before Christmas!_ ” He beamed. “Jack and Sally!”

And Sallie mirrored his joy, pointing at him with a smirk.

“I saw what you did there!” Sallie grinned, receiving a high-five from Jack…even though it was unintentional. Jack just frantically slapped Sallie’s hand…

_Huh…he seems nice._

“So,” Jack folded his arms behind his back and smiled, looking back at the card under Sallie’s arm. “Who’s the special guy?”

Sallie blinked, looking down at the card and smiled.

“Well, I’m a bit stuck. It’s for my friend, Corey, but I _really_ like him.”

“Hmm.” Jack replied, and for a moment Sallie thought he was contemplating, probably hearing that sort of comment all the time. But the more she thought back to it…

Sallie looked up at him, seeing him frowning.

“I wanna try and get him a card to say how I feel, but at the same time be serious.” Sallie held the card up. “This tickled me, but it’s _not_ what I’m aiming for…I don’t know.”

“Are you guys even dating?” Jack asked curiously, and Sallie shook her head.

“No…I’m in that No-Man’s-Land shit where I’m not too sure where I stand, but we’re _very_ close.”

“So, you’re together but not official?”

“It’s…a little more complex than that.”

“Like you’re fuck-buddies?” Jack spoke, scratching his immaculate nose with his black painted nails.

“I…” Sallie was fighting against disgust and kindness. “I don’t like that term…Look,” She tapped the card. “I _really_ like Corey, and I want to _show_ him how I feel. Something that’ll _hopefully_ get me to go to that step of _actually_ dating him.”

“Right…” Jack murmured, seemingly deep in thought. But suddenly appeared to spark into life when Liv and Barbie were watching them. “I’m sure we can find something here, at least.” Taking Sallie’s hand, he pulled her to the other side of the card store, showing her more selection of Valentine’s Cards.

Liv and Barbie exchanged glances.

“She probably knows him.” Barbie whispered, and Liv nodded, but she was still watching him. Mostly because her arms were full of sweet gifts, shopping a little too excitingly and was hoping Jack would serve her.

And even when Jack left Sallie to serve her friends, Sallie was staring down at all the cards, frowning more and more, her lips pinched together beneath teeth. Nothing was helping. And what was worse, many of _these_ cards were for boyfriends and husbands…

_Fuck!_

Sallie decided to try another place, praying that she would have more luck. But she opted to take her humorous valentine’s card and buy it, using it as a back-up plan.

As Jack served Sallie, he looked at her shyly.

“Hey…um…since _Stairways_ is shut now, where do you guys go?”

“ _Hotel California_.” Barbie flashed a polite grin, despite not being asked by Jack. Jack glanced at Barbie and gave her a small smile.

“Really? Where’s that? I’ve never heard of it.”

“Oh, well, it’s just been opened. It’s at the South of Des Moines. Near _Escape Chambers.”_

“Huh…” Jack blinked, leaning on the counter towards Sallie. “I didn’t realise there was a new place. But I’m glad. I miss _Stairways_.”

“Yeah, same here. But _Hotel California_ is wonderful. TORQUE is doing a fantastic job.”

“Ah, TORQUE.” Jack muttered to himself, and Sallie noticed the dislike in his tone, rolling his eyes at the name. “Has he tried to flirt with you?”

“Oh, all the time. He’s fucking lovely though!” Sallie replied, hearing Barbie and Liv agreeing with her. “TORQUE really looks after us.”

“Yeah, but he’s such a sex-pest!”

“True, but isn’t everyone?” Sallie shot back, a little sharp-tongued. “He’s a dear friend of mine.”

“Yeah? And would _you_ fuck _that_?” Jack laughed, his tone coming across almost as fabricated jest.

“To be honest, if I wasn’t into Corey so much, I’d happily let that bastard rag me around in the bedroom. I mean, his muscles! Fuck!” Sallie fanned her hand over her face humorously, receiving giggles from Liv and Barbie. But despite trying to lighten the situation, Jack only gave her a tight smile.

“Well,” Jack appeared to have softened slightly. “ _Anyway_ , I was wondering if, maybe, next time you guys go there, I could come along please?” He gave the ladies a shy smile. “I don’t have many friends, and you guys seem awesome.”

Liv and Barbie looked at Sallie, asking her final judgement on the situation, and after a moment Sallie nodded.

“Sure. The more the merrier. They’re always a big group of us too, so you’ll be guaranteed to be safe!”

“Great!” Jack piped up, patting his hands on the counter delightfully. “I know…this is weird but, maybe, we can exchange numbers so we can…y’know, keep talking?”

Sallie had to think for a moment. Normally, she would be very protective of her details. God, she didn’t even give Corey her number when they were getting close. But she thought that giving him her number wouldn’t be so bad. So long he didn’t pester her all the time, and didn’t know where she lived, until they get better acquainted, the phones in their hands will keep their distance. Besides, Sallie almost saw herself in him. But unlike her, he had the balls to _ask_.

“Yeah, sure.” She finally said, pulling out her phone.


	37. Secret Admirer

“Ahh, so how was your shopping spree?” Sid grinned, cocking his head to the side like an adoring puppy. He sat, perched more like, on the arm of the sofa.

Liv, Barbie and Sallie had just returned, meeting up with _Slipknot_ back at Joey’s house. Joey’s house seems to be the main rendezvous point for the band and friends. But it was okay. _Slipknot_ , in a sense, started back at Joey’s home, so it seemed more sentimental that way.

Band practise was over. A few of the guys were at the backyard smoking, relaxing after an intense practise session, and only Sid, Jim and Craig were inside.

Craig had always been the adorable, timid one. He was a man that spoke very little, but he listened. _Always listened._ And the small smiles and faint nods were always reassuring that he was paying attention. Wide eyes behind glasses with a tame beard growing. Contently, the mute sampler was reading the newspaper, his interest peaked when he saw the crossword and began to play it.

Sallie waved at Craig and received a smile in greeting back before he resumed to his crossword puzzle.

“It was good.” Liv beamed back, clutching onto the bags protectively. Last thing she needed was Jim to have a sneak-peak of her gifts.

“Corey’s in the back?” Sallie asked, with the acrobatic Sid nodding madly. Slipping through the kitchen, Sallie tucked the card into her front hoodie pocket, hiding it from Corey’s curious eyes and walked to the backyard.

It was a long and narrow garden, with sun-bleached wooden fencing all around the edge. The grass always suffered the terrible heat of the sun, and was lacking in colour, dried and crispy under her boot, dying and patchy. At the bottom of the yard, Corey, Shawn and Mick sat on battered lawn chairs, a can of beer in their hands. Sallie assumed the others were elsewhere in the house. Probably in the garage.

The sun was pleasant on her, and taking a deep sigh, Sallie felt okay, relieved to be safe with her new family. She spied Corey pushing a cigarette against his mouth, inhaling its toxic fumes and blowing it out mid-chuckling over a joke Shawn had said. The more she watched the man, the more she found herself unable to get angry at him. Sure, she hated the excessive smoking, but it was easily forgiven for his personality and absolute big heart. He took care of her when she needed him, and it was thanks to him that she had a bed to sleep, clothes on her back, food in her stomach and a roof over her head. He was a special, dysfunctional angel to her, and she was so lucky to have him. To have them _all._

The thought of suicide never came back to her after meeting him…

Tears tried to taunt at her just from those fragile memories, but she blinked them back and tried to contain herself. No need to get emotional now. Sallie began to walk towards the three band-members.

But the compulsive urge took over as she walked towards them, and promptly she wrapped her arms around Corey’s shoulders from behind, slightly spooking the singer. Corey glanced back and instantly realised it was Sallie hugging him.

“Hey Sal,” Corey sighed, touching her hand gently. “How was the ladies’ day out?”

“Great, we had an awesome time.” Sallie replied, squeezing her arms around his shoulders and pressed her face into his neck, holding him.

“She missed you the most, obviously.” Shawn laughed, shaking his head and chugged the remains of his beer, crushing the beer can against his skull.

“I missed you too, Shawn.” Sallie quipped, releasing Corey and embracing the Clown. Shawn grinned in pride.

“Aww, good. She saved the best until last!” He announced. And that was when Sallie gave Mick a hug, and Shawn glared in mock-anger. “Hey!”

Smirking playfully, Sallie stood between where Mick and Corey sat.

“How was band practise?” Sallie asked, faintly interrupted when her phone chimed. A text message. She ignored it.

“It wasn’t too bad.” Shawn reclined back in his seat, basking under the sun. “Paul snapped a bass string.”

“How the fuck did he manage that?!” Sallie cried out, looking at Corey and Mick for answers. Mick shrugged.

“Nobody knows.” Mick replied with a humorous, spooky voice. “Not even Paul.”

Sallie opened her mouth-

Another bleep from her phone. Frowning, Sallie pulled her phone out and unlocked it.

“Oh! Someone’s popular!” Shawn chuckled, watching as Sallie read the text message. She didn’t frown, or looked upset, so it wasn’t her father. But…

“Who is it?” Corey asked kindly, and Sallie smiled at him.

“I made a new friend at the Mall. Jack.” She looked at Shawn. “Apparently he knows you?”

“Everyone fucking knows Shawn.” Corey laughed, a little too hard. The Clown sat up.

“Jack? Is he the little dude with the purple hair?”

“Yeah.”

“Ah, I know him!” Shawn grinned, waving his hand. “Nice guy. Very shy though.”

“We met up at the Mall while we were shopping, and he recognised me as ‘The girl that beat up Jodie’.” Sallie glanced at Corey, spying no anger on his handsome, sunny face. “Sorry.”

“Nah, it’s fine.” Corey smiled, a soft laugh frilling his words.

“And he wanted to join us when we go to the _Hotel California_ next time.” Sallie finished, texting him back. “He’s sad that _Stairways_ is gone, and he didn’t know where we went to.”

“That’ll be good.” Mick nodded, drinking his beer. “The more, the merrier!”

“What’s he saying?” Corey asked curiously, smiling.

“Just the usual _What are you up to_ shit.” Sallie held her Nokia to Corey, as if to prove him that she was speaking the truth. Not that she needed to. “He just wanted to chat. Probably bored at work or something.”

“Where does he work?”

Sallie had to think quickly.

“ _Apollo Music._ ” Sallie replied promptly. If she ever told them that Jack worked in the card shop, they would all have a suspicion in why Sallie would go there. It’s no one’s birthday, and Valentines Day was pretty distinct in the air.

“Ah, the music store where I nearly fucking wrecked you.” Corey grinned, seeing Shawn looking at him with a dirty glint in his eyes.

“You nearly fucked her in the Mall? Dirty bastard.”

“Not like that, you dumbass.” Corey chuckled, looking back as Sallie tucked her Nokia back into her pocket.

“Are we still going to the Hotel California tomorrow?”

“Yeah yeah. And bring that Jack dude too. He’s gonna fucking love it!”

* * *

The evening was surprisingly warm the next night. _Slipknot_ were not playing. No, tonight was just a night of drinking, companionship and joy.

The band agreed to meet up with Jack downtown and walk with him to _Hotel California_ , showing him the way to the new hangout for heavy metalists and rockers.

TORQUE welcomed the band and their friends in with welcoming arms, typically grabbing Sallie and swinging her around. It had become a thing now between them, the bodybuilder holding Sallie against his chest like a little doll and even walked inside the club carrying her like that. Barbie and Joey laughed at this, amused by how easy it was for TORQUE to hold Sallie.

Corey cocked a brow, but never saw any threat with the goliath of a man. TORQUE always meant well for them all, and while he saw TORQUE as a small threat, he wasn’t a Jay…

“Doesn’t that bother you?”

Corey blinked and looked back at the purple-haired man behind him, seeing Jack lurching a bit too close behind Corey, as if intimidated. His green eyes locked onto Corey’s gaze.

“Huh? No, TORQUE is harmless.” Corey smiled with a shrug, watching as TORQUE placed Sallie on the bar. Sallie leaned back from where she sat and smiled at the bright-red haired barman. Duke, a long-term friend of TORQUE’s, and they bumped fists with a laugh, talking.

“TORQUE’s gross…”

Corey frowned and glanced back at Jack.

“You don’t like him, huh?”

Jack looked back at Corey, and his eyes held a strange distaste.

“He’s just gross…”

The singer had to think for a moment, wondering why Jack had this distaste for TORQUE. TORQUE had done nothing to anyone. If anything, he was just an intimidating moron. But TORQUE had never harmed anyone… “He flirts with every girl that comes in. But he seems to have a liking for Sallie…”

“Sallie’s well-loved here.” Corey interrupted, his voice a little terse. “She is part of our family, and everyone looks after her.”

A little irritated by Jack’s negativity, Corey approached the bar, walking to Sallie. She faced Corey, and giggling, she held her arms out, her legs waving.

“I can’t get down. I’m too small.”

“Midget.” Corey sneered playfully, wrapping his arms around her and lifting her off the bar. Catching Shawn’s grin, Corey narrowed his eyes jokingly back, holding Sallie against him, her legs hanging over his hips.

“Corey, not in public!” Shawn howled, and Corey rolled his eyes.

“We’ll be back, guys!” Corey announced, pushing Sallie against the nearest wall and mocked-humped her, making his best friend squeal and pushing his face.

“ _Corey!_ You bellend!”

Their friends roared with laughter at the sight while Corey placed Sallie back down carefully. “Don’t do that.” Sallie whispered to his ear, giggling, her cheeks brightening. “My body went funny then.”

“Keep being yourself and I might just drop my pants and fuck you on the floor.” Corey murmured lewdly to her hair, his hand touching her arm and stroking it.

Sallie looked up at Corey and she smirked, evidently aroused by his comment, and she tapped his nose.

“Behave-”

“Sal, you want a drink?” Jack was suddenly behind Corey, and Sallie tilted her head to see Jack there, missing Corey’s irritated reaction.

“I’ll be fine, thanks.” Sallie replied, facing back Corey, who had hidden his reaction and looked back at Sallie. “Let’s find a table.”

Corey and Sallie walked back to their usual table, a grand curved corner sofa that was big enough for all the band members and their friends. Corey and Sallie sat down there first.

“Aren’t you getting a drink?” Sallie asked, and was surprised that Corey shook his head.

“Joey’s getting it. He lost a bet with me so he’s paying first rounds.”

“The poor baby.” Sallie shook her head, leaning back into the red leather. Corey hung his arm over her shoulder and pulled her against his chest. “You’re awfully affectionate tonight.” Sallie pointed out, looking up at Corey from his chest. “People are gonna assume we’re dating.”

_That’s the point._

Corey shrugged casually.

“What’s wrong with friends cuddling?” He replied, brushing a finger across her forehead, moving a stray of hair from her face. “What’s wrong with friends _kissing_?”

Now Sallie was fully aware that people were watching, feeling her face becoming a fiery flush of hotness. Corey was leaning closer.

“Corey, this is weird…” Sallie giggled shyly. “I mean, I’m not complaining, but…” Her eyes glanced away for a time, and then back at him. “You’re not usually like this...”

That’s when Sallie noticed something a little strange.

Corey’s pupils were enlarged, _too_ dilated.

Corey noticed Sallie intensely looking at his eyes, he pulled away suddenly, avoiding eye-contact.

“I just feel good.” Corey grinned, pulling her into a firm hug against his chest. “You make me feel good, Sal.” He added, kissing the top of her head.

Sallie couldn’t see, but Corey was watching Jack, his eyes sparking a smirking triumph to see the lilac-hair fool watching them from the bar, glaring at Corey poisonously. Corey felt his ego inflamed inside of his chest, making him feel so proud of what he had.

This precious little thing in his arms. He noticed how affixed Jack seemed to be with Sallie. All the way walking here, Jack was practically attached to Sallie’s hips, like a little lost puppy following her.

_She deserves better. She deserves better than you. She deserves better than me…_

**_SHE DESERVES ME._ **

“Corey.”

Corey loosened his grip and Sallie looked up, tilting her head.

“Hm?”

“Behave you,” Sallie smirked, tapping his nose, implying he was acting a little out of character.

_Shit._

“Okay, okay!” Corey laughed, sniffing, releasing her at last. His arm remained over her shoulder, and as their friends joined them, sitting around the singer and Brit, Corey slowly beckoned Sallie to relax her head on his shoulder, and Sallie complied, always having comfort in Corey’s arms. This was normal to their friends. Corey and Sallie had always been so close, and while some were pleased to see the best friends at peace, others knew what the other person suggested. Shawn knew, Mick knew, and so did Liv and Barbie.

Shawn nestled against Sallie, holding his phone and wanted to show Sallie something. And Jack was left with the small stool at the end with Sid, watching Corey and Sallie from the other side.

The happy couple.

The _perfect_ couple.

Jack watched Corey darkly, seeing that Corey was ignoring him now, focusing on what Shawn was presenting.

Jack scrutinized the singer, knowing that Corey was trying to do something, but he wasn’t sure. Between sips, he looked down at his phone, his finger over the send button, seeing the premade text message he had ready for Sallie.

“So, Jack, what’s your favourite band?”

Jack hid his phone under the table and looked at Sid, who was smiling so happily.

“Oh, I like _Megadeth_.”

“ _Megadeth_ is so fucking badass!” Sid was hyped, and was talking Jack’s ear off, eager in finding out more about their new friend. Jack resumed back to his terrified persona, speaking to Sid with small comments and soft smiles.

Shawn slapped his hand on the table, howling with laughter.

“I can’t believe that the dumbass was even stupid enough to put it in the fire!” Shawn laughed, hard, choking on his own breath and covered his mouth. Sallie laughed harder at this, and when the Clown faced them back, his smile faltered slightly. “Um, Corey, you’ve got a…” He pointed at his nose.

Sallie turned around, and saw what Shawn was pointing out.

“Corey, your nose…”

A ribbon of blood was trickling down from his nose, and it wasn’t until then Corey noticed it, tapping his fingers on his upper lip and saw the blood.

“Fucking nosebleeds.” He grumbled, turning to their friends. “Make way!”

Mick, Jim, Liv and Joey grumbled together as they all had to move, allowing Corey to leave his place and hurried to the bathroom.

“Hey Sal!” Shawn nudged the little Brit, distracting her. “Let’s go to the stage!” And before Sallie could even deny the offer, the Clown practically scooped her up and hurled her towards the stage, the space before it empty. Lights bounced everywhere; the heavy music was playing. _KoRn_ was playing, and the Clown was bouncing, trying to hype Sallie up.

And she fell for it. The Clown grabbed Sallie’s hand and swung her around in a strange dance, with Sid promptly joining in, dancing in a skipping manner. Sid always had interesting dance moves, and while they were unique and wild, they all admired him for it. Fluid and with no fucks given.

Jack had approached the three, joining them, subtly dancing.

When the heavy song of _Enter Sandman_ came up, Sallie practically screamed, jumping and Shawn smiled. Other rockers seemed to be inspired by this small group of dancers, gathering onto the dance floor and swayed their heads to the soft introduction of the song, and when the guitars and drums suddenly riled up, they all jumped at once and began headbanging together.

Sallie’s long hair whipped up and down, singing at the top of her lungs, with Shawn pretending to play the drums, and Jack performed the air-guitar, his smile dropping when TORQUE was behind Sallie, bending his legs slightly and watched the little woman singing, also mimicking the air-guitar, his head banging to the music. He began to sing along with Sallie, their voices drowned in the music, but they both knew their duet would be amazing. Mick stood between Shawn and TORQUE, shaking his head at TORQUE’s ‘poor’ guitar skills. TORQUE punched his fellow metal-head mischievously on the arm.

And even when the prayer verse came, Sallie felt a strange enlightenment as she spoke James Hetfield’s lines, and her friends repeated after her, as if she was a lead singer and they were her back-up singers. It was all for fun, but Sallie felt a bizarre surge of confidence, a natural performance improvised by her fellow headbangers.

After the song was finished, another Metallica song followed behind. _Sad but True._

“The fucking Black Album is on loop!” TORQUE cried out, laughing as he hurried back to the DJ Booth, rejigging the music playlist.

By this time, Corey had left the bathroom, rubbing his nose manically with his sleeve, shaking his head. He noticed a large amount of their friends were missing from the table, and when he turned to the dance-floor and saw Sid dancing so eccentrically, with Shawn and Mick nearby, he noticed Sallie and Jack in the centre too, dancing to the music and singing.

Corey studied this new face carefully. He wasn’t sure if he even remembered this bastard from _Stairways_. With stupid bright hair like that, how could Corey miss him? Then again, Corey was often off his face with alcohol. Right now, he only had a few drinks and was still sober enough to have conscious thoughts, but his addiction was clouding his mind…

Jack was standing too close to Sallie…

* * *

…and he never seemed to leave Sallie. Always there. Always asking for her attention.

Corey held back his antagonism with the new friend, seeing the hot stare from Jim warning him to leave the new guy alone. Jim might be wearing sunglasses, but Corey could feel his glare.

“You don’t like him.” Jim pointed out when he appeared by Corey’s side, who was sat by the bar with another glass of cider in his hand. Corey said nothing, his eyes staring hard at the decorated backdrop of the bar, seeing the neon lights and empty bottles there.

“He’s too clingy.” Corey murmured eventually, looking at his tall guitarist. “Bastard won’t leave Sallie alone.”

“She doesn’t seem to mind it.” Jim pointed out, leaning against the bar, watching as Sallie and Liv sang, their hair a messy windmill of brunette and red. Jack was with them, holding a bottle of some fruity beverage Corey didn’t seem to care to register.

_Pussy drink._

“She’s too fucking nice.” Corey slurred, and Jim faced him, frowning lightly.

“Dude, you’re hammered. You should go home before you get too Corey.”

Corey shot an offended glare at Jim.

“Too Corey?!” Corey cried out, a little too loudly. “There’s nothing wrong with being too Corey!”

“There is when he’s _you_.” Jim said, his brows furrowing. He glanced back at Sallie. “Sallie’s okay. She’s safe, and that Jack dude is not gonna do anything to her.” Jim blinked, turning back to Corey, seeing the singer glaring so spitefully at Jack, drunk eyes judging him. “Are you jealous?”

“No.”

“You mean _Yes_.”

“Fuck off, James.”

Jim chuckled softly.

“You sound like my dad.” Jim shook his head, leaning down to Corey. “Just be peaceful about this. Please. It’s not like she’s your girlfriend.” Jim said that on purpose, and he watched as Corey slowly glared at him, icily.

“She’s my _best friend_.” He grilled.

“See? If she was your girlfriend, I’d understand. But she’s been around tons of guys, and none of them ever did anything to her. She can protect herself, y’know. Poor thing’s been through a lot.”

“Yeah, but…” Corey trailed off, and when Jim spied him glaring past him, the guitarist looked over his shoulder. Further ahead, in the midst of other headbangers, Sallie was with Jack, the small rocker leaning close to Sallie, whispering something to her. Sallie giggled, and Corey felt venom running in his mind. Jim saw it too, but he noticed how Sallie was stepping back, gathering space. She was clearly not comfortable enough with Jack being so close.

Corey stood up suddenly, his bar stool screeching, and Jim already had his hands on his shoulders, forcing him back to his seat.

“Sit _down_ , Corey.” Jim instructed harshly, his tone warning him. Corey complied. For now. “Look, she’s gathering space from him. She’s not interested in him. She obviously wants _your_ dick.”

Jim was trying to soothe the singer, and he watched as the fury in Corey’s eyes grew, so violently, and suddenly he burst from Jim’s grasp, pushing him aside and was storming through the dance-floor, barging past the other club-goers. Jim slapped a hand on his forehead. “Fuck sake.” He spun around to the bar, calling out for TORQUE. He needed to warn him of the potential fight.

“So, you wanna hang out tomorrow?” Jack asked, looking at Sallie with a dumb smile, evidently a little tipsy.

“Yeah, we’ll see.” Sallie replied, making sure that Jack wasn’t too close to her. He got frighteningly close that she thought he was going to kiss her. And he had done. He kissed her cheek and ear, grumbling something as he slumped over her, and Sallie waited patiently for him to remove himself. Jack was getting drunk, but he was peaceful about it, at least.

When Sallie saw a shadow shifting over Jack, she turned to see Corey looming behind her. “Corey!” Sallie piped up, relieved that he had come back to her, and wrapped him with her arms, hugging him. “I missed you!”

Corey was already running with the intentions of hitting Jack without a warning, but when the small Brit held onto him, her cry of joy at his arrival, his fury softened, and he held Sallie back, pressing his face into her hair, clumsily.

“Hey Sal.” He kissed her head, several times. “I missed you too.” He could feel Jack watching them. He swayed, drunkenly, holding Sallie for support.

“Let’s sit you down.” Sallie said, looking up and patted his cheek. “You’re fucking hammered.” She tutted. This was the perfect opportunity to get away from Jack. She turned to Jack. “I’ll catch you later.” Sallie replied, holding Corey’s hands and led him to the table they owned hours ago. Joey sat there, alone, looking through his phone and keeping mark of their place in case anyone else stole it. As Sallie dragged Corey to the table, Jack watched, waiting.

Corey threw himself onto the curved sofa, pulling Sallie down and held onto her on his lap tightly, face buried in her arm.

“I missed you.” He repeated, his hug clenching harder, choking the small woman.

“I missed you too.” Sallie chuckled, turning on Corey’s lap and looking at his drunk expression. “You dopey idiot.”

“Oh guys,” Joey smiled, seeing that he was no longer alone. “You gonna be here for a while? I _really_ have to piss.”

“It’s okay, we’ll be here.” Sallie replied, pointing at the bathroom down the hall. “Go, go power-rangers!” She laughed, and Joey beamed, grateful as he scrambled out of the sofa and hurried, practically grabbing his groin in desperation.

Corey stared at Sallie, smiling tiredly, rubbing her back as he watched her. She looked down at him and smiled back.

“You just gonna stare at me like a weirdo?” Sallie cooed, running her hand through his blond hair. “You idiot. I’m gonna have to yeet you over several flights of stairs.”

“We’ll crash at your place.” Corey drawled, and realised a moment too late what he said. “Oh fuck…” He pressed his cheek onto her arm again. “Sorry.”

“We can crash at my place.” Sallie nodded, knowing what Corey had done, and twisted it back at him. Grinning, she added: “That’s the same fucking flights of stairs, you dickhead!”

“Oh yeah, you live with me now.” Corey snorted, his hand running the back of her hair, stroking her long, messy hair. The frantic headbanging and windmills has made Sallie’s hair into a mess of tangled locks, like bed-hair, and Corey had to admit, it was rather alluring. “I’d fuck you now if you’d let me.” He murmured, and he watched Sallie shiver at his words, her head rubbing in his hand.

“Oh, you dumbass. I know you would.” She purred, pressing her forehead against his. “But not right now.”

Corey’s hands reached for Sallie’s ass, and he grinned lewdly when she jolted at the touch, but he was simply pulling her up higher on his lap, readjusting her to be more comfortable. But his hands never left her ass. His fingers squeezed them.

“Such a squidgy bum.” He giggled, almost childishly, and Sallie chuckled.

“Thanks!” She laughed, both hands holding his face. Corey looked into her eyes, knowing what she wanted. He felt her hands running down from his face to his chest, feeling their warmth on his black buttoned shirt.

“You can kiss me if you want.” Corey muttered slowly, puckering his lips at her expectantly.

“I-”

Jack was sitting by the table.

“Fuck, I need another drink!” Jack cried out, smiling.

There was a terrifying moment Sallie experienced, watching an adorable drunk Corey abruptly changed his expression so shockingly fast, and suddenly he looked violent, his eyes huge with vehemence as he snarled, slowly looking back at Jack, who slumped against the sofa.

Jack smiled innocently.

Sallie faced Jack, flashing him a terse smile before facing back to Corey, her attention onto him. No one mattered right now. The fact that Corey was treating her like this made her feel better, and she wanted more.

“Hey,” Sallie cooed, her hair stroking his skull, trying to pull his hateful glare away from Jack. She had to actually force his face to look at her, and seeing her pleading eyes, Corey dismissed his spitfire at the intruder. “It’s getting late. You wanna go home now?”

It wasn’t even that late. About 11:30pm. But because Sallie didn’t drink, she often felt exhausted earlier than the others. She was naturally nocturnal, but her headbanging and singing and incredible activity at the first few hours of the night had drained her energy.

But when she asked Corey that, he knew what it really meant.

_I wanna fuck you._

“If you want,” Corey said, tilting his head back, swaying slightly.

“I’ll let the others know.” Sallie informed, patting his shoulders and attempted to move. Corey suddenly held her down.

“Wait until 12.” Corey insisted, begging, and Sallie accepted it, nodding.

“Sure thing.”

Corey’s hand lifted to her cheek, stroking it softly with his thumb.

“I’m so lucky to have you…” Corey crooned sleepily, his eyes drinking up her features. He slowly gazed up at her, his hand curving around the back of her head, and Sallie sensed the intention of him wanting to kiss her. She didn’t stop him.

His hand cupped the back of her skull, and with a gentle smirk, Corey closed his eyes and puckered his lips again, pulling Sallie down and kissed her gently, their lips holding one another for a moment, breaking for air and resumed the kiss, slow and loving.

 _Now I wanna fuck you!_ Sallie found herself crying out in her head. Corey’s kisses always seem to set off several horny vibes through her, and her body was already hot and bothered for him. Her groin felt sensitive with each kiss, fully aware of the male body pressing against her.

They broke the kiss, and Corey groaned, shuddering. He breathed, slowly, eyes closed, and Sallie waited, seeing if he was falling asleep. But he lifted his head up again and kissed her, pressing his lips down her jaw and down her neck. Closing her eyes, forgetting about the world around them, Sallie’s hand grabbed onto Corey’s head, fingers brushing against his ears, and she moaned under her breath, letting Corey’s lips make love to her throat. His teeth grazed at it, teasing her that he could bite her at any time. And she waited.

Oh, she was ready.

Corey stopped swiftly, and when Sallie’s eyes opened, she noticed him staring at Jack.

“The fuck did you say?” Corey grilled, glaring hotly at Jack, who was leaning over the table, smiling nastily. Jack pointed at Sallie.

“She isn’t even your fucking girlfriend…” He muttered.

“So?” Corey hissed, and Sallie tried to coax the drunken man to calm down. But Corey was rebellious.

“What’s…” Jack blinked, tilting slightly from intoxication. “What’s stopping you from fucking with another girl when you’re bored of her?” Jack’s statement was innocent to himself, but Corey read it as an insult, and when he looked at Sallie, he felt cold with horror to see her looking so hurt from this concept she never thought of. Jack had planted a seed of anxiety in his best friend.

**_No, no, no, no, no, nononononononononon-!_ **

“I won’t fucking do that, you fucker!” Corey snapped, and Jack didn’t seem threatened anymore. He was no longer the shy little man. But instead, he was a cocky bastard, and Corey despised it.

“Something tells me you’re lying.” Jack sneered, looking at Corey with a cocky smirk. “You get around in this place, fucking whatever pussy you can get.” He nodded. “Oh yes, I am aware of your shitty antics.”

“Jack, quit it.” Sallie interjected, sensing the thunder growing in intensity between the two drunks. Jack looked back at Sallie, who was glaring at him threateningly. “Seriously dude, don’t even try it.”

_I’m already terrified now…_

“You need to actually do this shit with a _boyfriend_ , not friends with benefits.”

Corey stood up suddenly, practically throwing Sallie off his lap, and before he could storm towards Jack, Sallie snatched Corey’s arm, trying to pull him back. But Corey’s strength tripled, and he snatched his arm away, standing before Jack.

“What the _fuck_ are you looking at?!” Corey bellowed, his voice reaching to innocent bystanders, and Sallie was very conscious that they were drawing attention to each other.

“A fuckwit that doesn’t deserve someone like Sallie!” Jack snapped back, his teeth snarling, like a little chihuahua being cornered by a Husky. “She’s lovely!”

Corey snatched at Jack’s collar, drawn his fist back and hurled his fist forward towards Jack’s face-

Sallie blocked the attack, throwing both of her arms in the way, and shouted out in discomfort at the impact.

“ _Stop it!_ ” Sallie screamed; her voice laced with the agony from Corey’s brutal swipe. She snatched Corey away from Jack, throwing Jack into the sofa. “Fucking stay here!” Sallie yelled, pointing at Jack, who seemed to have been shunned by Sallie. And with that, Sallie dragged Corey to the front door, who was yelling insults at Jack as they left. Their friends followed them, and Sallie insisted in going home.

They understood.

* * *

Sallie was surprised how quickly Corey calmed down. Just a small walk back to their apartment and he returned back to the foolish, drunken moron, lounging over Sallie’s small body and dragged his heels, laughing spitefully at Jack. Sallie refused to listen, taking her drunken best friend back home.

Corey was co-operative at least.

Once they returned home, Corey dragged his heels inside, throwing himself face-first into the sofa, and relaxed. Sallie locked the door and sighed, looking back at Corey.

“You’re a dickhead, Corey.” Sallie murmured, her voice tainted with affection, but was severely disappointed. She could feel a bruising coming onto her forearm from Corey’s punch.

Jack got nasty really quickly. Possibly the drink, bringing out this little demon he had inside of him, and Corey…

Deciding to leave Corey to sleep, Sallie walked towards the bedroom, glancing at the IOWA mask as she entered. It hasn’t moved.

Approaching the bed, she began to remove the hoodie off her body…

And felt something in the pocket.

_Oh fuck, the card!_

Sallie reached in and pulled out the card, which was wrapped in the plastic bag it came with-

Something fell. A folded piece of paper, crumpled.

It wasn’t a receipt, and Sallie leaned down to pick it up, opening it. A letter in black biro, smudges across some of the writing…

_Sallie,_

_I hope you have a great evening with me. You are stunning, and so lovely, and mean the world to me. I’m so lucky that we’ve met. Lots of love and kisses to my sexy little headbanger._

_Your Secret Admirer_

_XXX_

Sallie stared down at the handwriting, examining it in mute-horror, and the panic began to grow as she started the prompt process of elimination. This wasn’t Corey’s handwriting. Corey hadn’t sent her anything like this. No one fucking does. _‘Lucky that we’ve met?’_ Is that a recent thing then? _‘Have a great evening with me’?_ Another thing that didn’t make sense.

Gradually, Sallie crushed the letter in her trembling hand, realising her conclusion was not the answer she was looking for…


	38. Eden

# 

_It was probably a prank. Just a fucking prank._

_So why did it sound so serious in the first place?_

_This is Shawn’s doing. He’s a jokester!_

_You know that’s not his handwriting…_

_What if he’s faking it? Anyone could make a new handwriting-_

_You’re making excuses! It’s painfully obvious who it is. Your new boyfriend…_

The piece of paper was still in Sallie’s pocket. The last thing she needed was for a hung-over Corey to find it and get angry. Sure, Jack was a massive dick last night, but alcohol made people do stupid things. It is why she despised it so much. It changed a person. Whether it intoxicated them into a moron or revealed their true colours.

Either way, its never any good. Even drunk Corey could be a handful, with his aggression levels higher and obsession with bread…

She left her best friend in peace back at home. He was still asleep by the time she woke up, and it was in the afternoon, so she made sure he was comfortable and safe, with a blanket covering him, a sink bowl by him, and a fresh glass of water. She had left plenty of little kisses on his forehead too before she left.

Sallie decided to go visit _Merle Hay Mall_ again in search of a Valentines Card and gift for Corey. She was going alone this time, which was fine with her. She needed some time off and away from people, to contemplate on her own thoughts without many distractions.

The love letter remained in her jean pocket, tucked away from prying eyes. Fickle fabrics of thought went onto the love letter, trying to find out about this mysterious admirer, and her conclusion was solid.

This was not good. She felt no attraction towards Jack, and after last night, she was not entirely sure if she wanted him to join them again. Corey obviously did not like him, but that was the drink talking…probably.

Walking towards the escalator, Sallie grabbed the moving banister and stood there, her thoughts tracing. It made sense. Jack was just sending her text message after text message last night. She had to put her phone on silent and kept it on mute, seeing the amount of text messages increase each time she glanced at it.

And when it eventually got to 11 unread text messages, her curiosity got the better of her, and she opened them.

_Hey Sal, hope you got home safe. I had a great time._

_I’m sorry about the way I acted. I don’t hold my drink very well._

_Hope we can still be friends._

_I’m really really sorry._

_Morning! Hope you slept well._

_What are you up to today?_

_Sallie?_

_Sal?_

The evidence of a panic-texter. Of course, Sallie had no need to look at her phone last night as she was handling Corey, and she was tired. Putting her phone on silent mode meant she easily missed text messages, but the constant messages sent to her was irritating.

_He’s panicking. You felt that way when Corey didn’t reply._

_Hmm, true._

When she got to the top of the escalator, Sallie stepped to the side and began to text Jack back, trying to fix another problem she didn’t needed.

_Hey Jack, sorry for the missed texts, I was busy with Corey last night and fell asleep. I’m doing okay, just tired. Hope you’re okay too._

Sending the text, Sallie resumed the volume of her phone, turning silent mode off. And she tucked her phone in her pocket as she turned to a gift store nearby.

The text almost immediately returned to her, and Sallie decided to not reply to it just yet. Corey’s present was far more important.

Shopping for a guy was more difficult than Sallie realised. It was even worse that she wanted this present to be endearing, _serious_ , not a joke present. She’ll still have to look for another card for him.

_I could always make one?_

That was true, and while Sallie enjoyed making things…she knew she wasn’t the best. This has to be perfect for Corey. _So perfect!_

That was when her phone began to ring.

_Corey!_

She fished her hand in her pocket and looked at the caller ID. Her smile dropped as she reluctantly answered it.

“Hey Jack,”

“Sallie! Hi!” Jack beamed at the end of the phone, so spry and happy. One would not have thought he was the aggressive little shit last night. “I figured it’d be easier to call you. I wanted to…talk about last night.”

“Oh yeah?” Sallie knew where this was going, but she decided to give Jack a chance to redeem himself.

“I’m _really_ sorry. I didn’t mean to insult or hurt you last night.”

“I wasn’t the one insulted. It was Corey.” Sallie said, a little bluntly, her eyes scanning over a mug that said **SEX GOD.** Funny, but not what she was after.

“Yeah…” Jack seemed to disagree. “He just…I’m sorry, I just can’t find myself to like the guy.”

“Why not?” Sallie asked, her tone was soft, but she was holding back her irritation. “Corey is a wonderful guy.”

“I don’t know.” Jack whined, seemingly a little flustered. “I think I just get these bad vibes from people and I always tend to be right.”

Sallie’s eyes narrowed, walking around the store, and seeing champagne glasses and teddy bears. Again. This was the kind of shit she didn’t wanted.

“What vibe do you get from me?”

Jack hesitated.

“I think you’re a wonderful, _really_ beautiful woman.”

A sickening sensation rose at the back of Sallie’s throat, her suspicions being convinced more and more. The court room in her skull was already screaming _GUILTY_.

“Really?” Sallie asked, a part of her was taken back. But she had to put her foot down, the attitude he posed last night towards Corey still annoyed her. “That’s very kind of you but bear in mind that I too can be really nasty when I get pushed. Like Jodie learnt.”

“Yeah, but you were defending someone. That takes a lot of courage which I admire!”

“Exactly, so let me defend that same person again.” Sallie piped up, her tone growing intense suddenly. “Don’t ever talk to my best friend, or _any_ of my family, like shit again.”

Silence. And Sallie glanced away from the phone, waiting for a response.

“Yeah…I won’t. I’m sorry.” Jack replied in a small mew. “I never meant to hurt you.”

“I know, so don’t do that, okay?”

“Okay, okay….I’m sorry.”

“Hmm.” Bored of the store, Sallie left it, walking down the hall and watching the stores that she walked past, trying to figure out other places to venture to.

“What are you doing now?”

“I’m at the Mall, just getting a few things.”

“Really?” Jack beamed again, his voice shifting quickly. “So am I!”

“You working?”

“No, I’m just looking for things myself. Wanna meet up?”

_Fuck._

Sallie had to improvise a lie.

“As much as I want to, I-!”

“Oh! I see you!”

Sallie spun around quickly, her eyes searching through the shoppers around her, wondering where Jack was. She couldn’t see his purple hair, and frantically scanning the area, she turned back around, still looking.

_Where the fuck is he?!_

“I don’t see you…”

“It’s okay, I’ll come to you!” And he hung up.

_For fuck’s sake! I wanted to be alone!_

Sallie took a deep, exasperated sigh, tucking her phone in her pocket and waited. There was no point in fighting. She didn’t want the company, but now that Jack was onto her, she felt there was no choice but to tolerate with him as much as she could.

_He’s so obsessive over you. Like a little fanboy._

_I don’t want a fanboy… I want a man. I want my Corey…_

“Sallie!”

Rolling her eyes to herself, Sallie forced a smile and turned to the source of the voice, seeing Jack appearing down the hall, smiling, waving. “I’m glad you’re here.” Jack grinned, stopping beside her. “I was bored out of my mind.”

_I wasn’t! I was just fucking okay being alone, as intended._

“That’s fine.” Sallie lied through a pressed smile. “But just bear in mind that I can’t be here for too long. I’m getting picked up.”

“Is Corey picking you up?”

_Say yes. It’ll scare him off!_

“Yeah.” Sallie began to walk, and Jack followed her quickly.

“Wouldn’t he be still recovering from the drink last night? He seemed pretty gone.”

“He’s strong. Corey’s invincible.”

Jack frowned at this, seemingly unconvinced.

“I mean, if it’s a lot of trouble for him, I can take you home.”

_Please don’t. I don’t want you to know where I live._

“No, no! It’s fine, thank you!” Sallie waved a hand, smiling too brightly. She glanced at the _Iowa Custom T-Shirts and Hat_ store and pointed at it. “I just wanna nip in there.” Sallie added, turning and walking towards the store, Jack following her like a shadow.

After a moment, Jack spoke again.

“So, what _are_ you after?” He asked, looking at the clothes railing of perfectly-ironed t-shirts.

“I’m still looking for a gift. For _Corey_.” Sallie replied, intentionally mentioning Corey’s name.

“Valentines Gift?”

“Yeah. I’m still lost.”

“Just get him beer. He seems to like his drink.” Jack smiled, and Sallie studied the smile for a moment, wondering if it was a stab at Corey or if he was _really_ trying to be nice.

“Nah. Too typical. I want something that’s special between me and him.”

“A date, maybe?”

Jack felt a little bit of ice running in him when Sallie faced him, promptly she looked incredibly angry for a moment.

“I can’t just _ask_ him that.”

“Why not?”

“Because…” Good point. Why the fuck not? “Because it’s awkward.”

“Is Corey making it awkward?”

“No. I mean, look.” She stopped and spun around to him. “Quit interrogating me about my relationship with Corey. I’m doing what _I_ think is best for us…and I don’t…need people to tell me I’m doing it wrong, okay? Or that I’m being stupid. Or _anything_ , okay? I want to do what _I_ wanna do.”

She was waiting for Jack to reply, to try and bounce off and completely ignore what she had just asked. But to her surprise, he didn’t. He didn’t focus on the matter of Corey anymore, but instead-

“So… _You’re_ interested in him.”

“Yes.” Sallie grumbled, turning away to hide her frustration. “Can we just drop it please? You’re not helping me.”

“It’s making you think, isn’t it?” Jack insisted. “Surely that means something.”

Sallie’s brows furrowed hard, and she snapped a glare at him again.

“Do _you_ wanna fucking date me? Because you seem awfully fucking convinced that my best friend is a bad person. He’s not, okay? He’s a fucking brilliant, complicated man and I seem to be the only fucker that can understand that. Now, Jack, I’m gonna ask you _one more_ time. Back the _fuck_ away from my love life.”

It was then Sallie noticed that the store owner and his wife was watching her, and embarrassed, Sallie turned on her boots and stormed out of the store. She even had an idea of what kind of present she could give to Corey, but…

“Where are we going now?” Jack asked, his voice quipped with childlike glee.

“ _I’m_ going home. I don’t want to be here anymore.”

“Oh,” Jack said, sounding sad suddenly. “Well, I’ll walk you home-”

“No! I said I’m _fine!_ ” Sallie shrieked, finally losing her patience. “Seriously, just-!” She shook, shaking her head. “Leave me alone. I’ll see you later.”

And promptly, Sallie sprinted down the hall, hurrying to the other side of the mall and ran out without looking back. Her urgency in hitting Jack was growing, and she needed to get away from him while she could…

* * *

Corey looked from where he sat as Sallie stormed through the door, and he gave her a kind smile.

“Hey you, how-” His smile dropped, seeing a storm in her eyes. “Hey, what’s up?”

“N-Nothing, I’m just tired.”

Bullshit.

Corey slowly stood up from the sofa, turning as Sallie slammed her wallet and keys on the small, crooked table beside the door.

“You’re not okay.” Corey pointed out, his brows furrowing. “What happened, babe?”

“Nothing.” Sallie had her arms hugging herself, closing herself from him. Corey approached the little woman, shaking his head.

“Stop lying.” Came the firm command. “Did you see someone-?”

Her phone buzzed in her pocket, and Corey watched the woman snatching at her phone, glaring at the screen, and he witnessed a furious flame in her face ignite suddenly.

“ _Fuck off!_ ” She screamed, throwing the Nokia onto the floor, and covering her eyes with shaking hands. “Why won’t he just fucking leave me alone?!”

“Who?!” Corey cried out, his hands grasping onto her small wrists and pulled them from her face. Tears prickled the corner of her eyes. “Who is bothering you, babe?”

“That…fucking…” She closed her eyes. “I need a coffee…”

“Coffee can wait.” Corey persisted, his tone firm now. “Tell me Sal, _who_ is bothering you?”

Sallie looked at him, and she knew she had to tell him. She gave away too many signals, and she didn’t have anything to hide from him. She was just uncertain of his reaction.

“Jack…” She mewed, and Corey’s lips tightened. “He ‘bumped’ into me at the mall and wouldn’t leave me alone, and he was just…asking me all sorts of questions…”

“Questions?” Corey repeated, his tone getting darker, his eyes never leaving her. “Like what? Was he being perverted? That’s _my_ fucking job.”

Sallie shook her head.

“N-No, just invasive questions that made me really uncomfortable…and he hasn’t stopped texting me since last night and…” She paused, thinking back to the love letter.

Corey released her wrists, turning around and picking up her phone from the floor. He held it to her.

“Unlock it, Sal. I’ll fucking talk to him-”

“No, no! Please!” Sallie lunged at him, her hands grabbing onto her phone desperately. “Please, I don’t need this to get worse!”

“He’s clearly bothering you enough to piss you off.” Corey pointed out, frowning deeply.

“Just…don’t, please. Not right now.” Sallie begged, and in her hands, she felt Corey slowly release her phone, handing it back to her. “I’ll calm down. I was already in a bad mood, and he just didn’t help.”

“Next time you go to the mall, I’ll come with you this time.” Corey nodded, pulling out a cigarette stub from his pocket and relit it. “See how fucking _convenient_ it is for him to see _us_.” After he lit his cigarette, he puffed on it a few times to encourage the ember and inhaled the nicotine. “He obviously fucking likes you. He’s like a damn fanboy.”

_My point exactly…_

“But I don’t even _like_ him that way.”

“I know, babe. You actually have taste.” Corey smirked, hands on his hips as if stating that he was the acquired taste she had. And he wasn’t wrong. “Maybe we should go on a date in the mall, and let him see us.”

“A-A date?”

Corey shrugged, walking to the kitchen.

“Yeah, sure. I mean, it’ll piss him off. Plus, _I’ll_ look good.”

“Yeah, but Corey, I don’t need anymore drama than there already is.” Sallie sighed, following him. “I don’t want to date just to piss someone off. I want to date because I _want_ to date that person.”

“Hey,” Corey said, a narcissistic vibe to his tone. “Everyone _knows_ you’d date me, because I’m God’s gift, _obviously_.” He pulled off a sarcastic smug smile, and Sallie snorted at it, half-heartedly.

_I would date you though…I’m just too stupid to even ask you…_

“Oh yes, of course.” With a roll of her eyes, Sallie stopped and leaned against the counter, watching Corey put the kettle on, pulling out two cups. He took another long drag of his cigarette, the ember practically touching his knuckles. “I’ll be back.” She replied, turning away to grab her stuff and bring them into the bedroom.

“Okay, Terminator.” Corey grinned, taking the coffee jar, and preparing the drinks.

Sallie hurried to the bedroom, her keys, wallet and phone in her hands, and she walked to her side of the bed, placing them on the warped bedside table.

Her heart sank when she spotted another piece of paper sticking out from her wallet. Gingerly, she pulled it out and frowned.

_Shit…this looks different…_

Her fingers scrambled to open it, and her blood froze.

_Sallie, my darling._

_You smell so nice today. Like desert flowers. I wonder what you wash your hair with. I could smell it all day. I smell it on my clothes. The scent of Eve in Eden. I will be your Adam, and I shall never let any SNAKE ruin you._

_Your Secret Admirer,_

_‘Adam’. XXX_

Sallie squeaked in horror, throwing the piece of paper on the bed.

_No, fuck no! This is wrong! So fucking wrong! How did he managed to…did he grabbed it and…_

_But I didn’t even feel it-?!_

“Sallie?!” Corey called out, his converses squeaking against the cold tiles of the kitchen, hurrying towards the bedroom. When he appeared by the door, he looked at Sallie with wide eyes. “What’s wrong, babe?”

“Corey! I want to tell you, but you _need_ to answer something for me.”

Corey blinked, his eyes flickering slightly in confusion.

“Go on.”

“Are you…” _No, it’s fucking not._ “Are you pranking me?”

“Pranking you?”

“Or is Shawn? Because something is happening, and I’m confused and-”

“Hey, hey hey…” Corey was immediately beside her, his arms around her and pulled her into a hard hug. “What’s going on?” He stroked her hair, hushing her panic down. And it seemed to work. Sallie swallowed hard.

“I’m finding these notes…” Sallie bent down and picked her recent love letter up, holding it at Corey. “Do you know this handwriting?”

Corey took the note and Sallie gauged his expression, his bright blue eyes scanning the letters.

His brows furrowed, more and more. And a scowl of disgust wrinkled his nose.

“ _’The scent of Eve from Eden?!’ ‘Let me be your Adam?’_ ” He looked disgusted, and Sallie watched as wrath increased in his eyes. “Who the fuck is sending you these?”

“So it’s not you?”

“No. I’m not gross like that!” Corey looked at the letter again, reading it over, and slowly shaking his head. “Yeah, your hair smells fucking nice but…fuck.” He threw the piece of paper on the bed, discarding it. “Okay, okay, so you have an idea who is sending these to you?”

Sallie glanced at Corey, and he immediately knew what his best friend was thinking. “Jackass?”

“I think so, but I can’t be sure.”

“Who else has been latching onto your side the last few days?” Corey asked, his anger peaking in his voice. “You got anymore?”

Sallie sighed deeply, and her hand slipped into her jean pocket, fishing out the note that she was scrutinizing at the mall today. She pulled the other piece of paper and handed it to Corey, who took it and glared through it. “Okay, okay.” He nodded frantically, shoving both of the love letters in the drawers. “You’re fucking staying home. Tonight and tomorrow.”

“Staying home?”

“Yeah. I’m not letting this creep follow you.”

“But Corey, band practise-”

“I can go alone. And if I see that fucker-” His fists clenched hard, and Sallie immediately grabbed them, holding them down.

“Shh. Don’t…I…” She rubbed her forehead in thought. “I’ll stay here. You stay out of trouble, please?”

Corey gave her a hard smile, one that assured her that he would do no such thing.

“I can’t promise that.”

“Please, Corey…”

Sallie and Corey watched each other for a long moment, the darkness of the bedroom creating murky shadows on their faces. And when Corey took a deep sigh, Sallie felt relieved.

But she knew this wouldn’t last. If Jack didn’t stop…

Corey pulled Sallie into another hug, rocking her softly against his chest, his eyes glacial and cold.


	39. The Mouth of the Snake

Sallie obeyed Corey’s command and stayed at home the next day. It pained her that she couldn’t see her friends, but she took this time to be at peace and relax.

And Corey was so good to her. He had ordered pizza for her that night, bought her some bubble bath, rose-scented, and even borrowed a few horror movies for her to watch. But they both knew that she wouldn’t watch them without him. Watching a horror movie without Corey was like going to a restaurant alone…

Leaning against the kitchen counter, Sallie watched as rain trickled down the windowpane, the skies becoming darker as the end of another day was coming. A cup of hot chocolate in her hands, another gift from Corey, lifted to her lips as she listened to the rain outside.

She was expecting Corey to come back in a few more hours. She was already bored and alone without him, and she just wanted to lie in bed with him and cuddle. That’s all she has been doing with him. And it helped her sleep so much better. She forgets about her troubles when she was with him.

Her father had texted her that same day asking how she was, and she gave him a more heartfelt reply, declaring how much she missed him. Because it was true. Sure, she was still furious, but she would love to see him again.

When her father texted her to come back home, she was honest and told him that she couldn’t. That she had a new home with Corey now. She was safe, happy, and knew it would never work out living with Sam. Despite the troubles Sallie has had here and there, she had felt freed from the chains of Sam’s negativity, and it was all thanks to Corey and her friends.

_When I see Corey, I’m going to give him a huge kiss. I’m gonna hold him so much, and I’m gonna ask him to date me-!_

_Whoa, whoa! Sal, don’t get your hopes up too high! He’ll reject you quicker than anything._

_But…I…_

_Stay back, Sal. It won’t work._

That voice seemed to have possessed more power than Sallie realised. It was coming back to get her, and she needed to release it…somehow.

_When Corey gets back, I’ll be better._

Turning away from the window, Sallie left the kitchen, switching the light off and looked at the apartment. Since being here alone, Sallie had tidied the entire apartment without trying to move things around too much. The kitchen and bathroom were scrubbed, decorated with small potted plants they bought together the other day, the bathroom had tealight candles ready to be lit when she took her bath. All set up by Corey. He took care of her. All the time. Her Saint, her Faith…

All of his clothes were washed, dried and folded neatly in his drawers, and Sallie managed to tear a piece of the board from his bedroom window to reveal an untouched windowpane. She was surprised to see that it wasn’t damaged at all and questioned why the boards were there in the first place. But she removed the planks of wood from there and dusted the shelf, moving IOWA to the side…before looking back at it again.

_You still haunt me…but damn, I’m so attracted to this thing…_

The fact that Corey wore it always made it much better. Brushing her fingers against the latex flesh, she dotted a kiss on its forehead and placed it back to its rightful place, facing the bed.

Now that the apartment was tidied, Sallie decided it was best to have a bath, as Corey suggested, and dress in clean, fresh pyjamas, to curl under the fresh linen of Corey’s bed and expect his arrival, to assault him with kisses and all sorts of affection, like an excited girlfriend ready to pounce on her exhausted boyfriend-

_He’s not your boyfriend-!_

_Fuck off. He’s my best friend! And I wanna make him feel good._

Sallie approached the bathroom, running the bathwater and pouring in the glistening, pink liquid into the tub, running it under the water, and the vibrant scent of rose lifted around her.

_Fuck, this stuff actually smells good…_

Sallie typically had a shower, so it was a nice thought of having a bath instead to relax and soothe her muscles. Plus, she would smell pretty for Corey…

Smiling at that thought, Sallie began to undress, preparing her bath towel and finally managed to let herself go for a time…

* * *

An hour and a half in the bath of hot, soothing water felt amazing. Sallie had forgotten how glorious baths felt to the body, easing aching muscles she didn’t knew existed.

“Fuck, I smell like a fucking fairy!” Sallie laughed at her steamy reflection in the cracked mirror, grabbing her brush and combing it through her brunette, wet locks. “God, Corey…I’m so lucky to have you.” She had to admit, while she was in the bath, she was expecting Corey to come in and surprise her with a bucket of iced water or something. But he never arrived. She wasn’t sure if she was disappointed or relieved. But she knew he’ll be back soon.

After promptly drying herself and some self-care was applied, Sallie was ready for bed, feeling rather pretty and sexy. Her skin felt soft and smelt of roses, which stayed on her arms. Clean and fresh, feeling like a completely new person, and being alone in the apartment had given her time to answer some questions to herself. But also helped her ease in certain matters.

She left the bathroom with the dirty thought of surprising Corey when he came back home involving his cock and her hands. But first she needed to know where he was. Her phone was in the bedroom, and she walked across the apartment towards it-

Then she halted.

_What…what the fuck is that?_

Her heartbeat had suddenly raised in her skull, throbbing in utter panic, reciting nightmarish instincts when she slowly looked at the front door, and saw a white note sticking beneath it.

_Don’t panic, Sal. Don’t fucking panic…_

_But…fuck…if its Jack…how did he fucking…_

Not wanting to risk it, Sallie snatched the piece of paper from the floor, knowing for certain it was another love letter. It was the same paper, the same writing, and she quickly opened it.

_My darling Sallie,_

_My beautiful little Eve,_

_You smell so good today. I want to be next to you, I want to feel you beside me all the time. I feel you’re so close to me, your naked body soft and delicate. Your smile as you laugh and how your hair falls down your back. I want to see you again. I want to smell you so close, press my nose in your skin and kiss you._

_Let’s meet in the Hotel California again. Please._

_Your Secret Admirer_

_XXX_

Sallie was pressed against the sofa, stepping away from the door, panting heavily, hyperventilating as the love letter shook tremendously in her hand.

_FUCK!_

Corey was immediately called when Sallie grabbed her phone, and in her sheer anxiety explained to Corey about her recent love letter. It wasn’t long until Corey returned to the apartment, and when Sallie thrusted the letter to his face, Corey took it, glared at it, and with a roar, he tore the letter in half.

“That fucking bastard! How did he-?!”

“I don’t know! I heard nothing all day!” Sallie shook, her knees drawn together. “Corey, I’m scared! I’m not gonna lie, but I’m shitting myself!”

“It’s okay, babe!” Corey scooped his little Brit in his arms and held her firmly against his chest, stroking her protectively. “It’s okay, babe. I’ve got you. You’re safe, you’re safe.” He hushed her, bringing her to the bedroom and comforted her that night.

It was horrific how Sallie had these notes, and how Jack was just…there.

But Corey knew what needed to be done. He needed to clear Sallie’s mind of Jack now, needing to erase that fucker from her thoughts. Because Sallie didn’t need it.

And neither did he.

* * *

The last few days Corey had been attached to Sallie’s side, like a protective hawk, following her everywhere. Sallie didn’t mind it. If anything, she felt safe.

And it wasn’t any different when _Slipknot_ had a gig back at the _Hotel California._

The rock club, as always, was heaving with people, more than their last gig. It was evident that their band was drawing more attention around Des Moines, and Sallie was so proud of them.

Ten minutes before the band played, Corey had made Liv and Barbie promise him that they would never leave Sallie’s side. They didn’t fully understand why, but Sallie simply declared it as ‘Corey being over-protective’. She _really_ didn’t want to explain the situation just yet.

The first half of the gig wasn’t too bad. Of course, it was hectic and wild, so fucking good! With _Slipknot_ in their distressing attire and haunting masks, jumping and screaming as a mosh-pit began several times at every song, the energy in the club lifted so high. After begging Barbie and Liv, Sallie was allowed to join the mosh-pit, smiling back at the masked face of Corey, as if telling him that she was okay, and going to have a bit of fun. Corey should be fine with it anyway, as from where he stood, he could see the entire floor.

TORQUE had joined the mosh-pit, and practically hurled himself into the smaller men, launching them at different directions of the floor and howled laughing, seeing Sallie getting pushed at him and he caught her.

“Hey! Sallie!” He grinned, helping her up and bumped his hips against her. “Is that all you’ve got?”

“Shut it, Mustang!”

“Mustang?!” TORQUE boomed, cocking a thick black brow. “Why Mustang?”

“Because you’re fucking huge and strong, but damn, you’re so shit at taking corners.” Sallie laughed, and the bodybuilder grinned.

“Oi you!” TORQUE chuckled, launching the little woman back into the centre of the mosh-pit. “I’ll get you for that!”

Sallie was gone, already drowning in the bodies as Corey’s voice raged across the club, the heat strong in the air. Sallie was already sweating beneath her shirt, her mind spinning from the adrenaline. She had been looking forward to this night, a night where she can hang out with her friends without a care or worry, moshing in the pits and getting her agitation out. Spinning in the aggressive mosh-pit, Sallie finally found herself thrown into the outer circle, caught by a few of the bystanders.

“Sallie!”

Her body instantly went cold when she heard that voice, and she looked back to see that one of her saviours was Jack.

“Jack!” Sallie piped up, promptly pulling herself away, looking a little terrified. “I didn’t realise you were here.”

“Oh yeah, I come here every weekend now!” Jack smiled, and it infuriated Sallie. Jack kept smiling as if none of the shit had happened, and she found herself hating that smile more and more. “ _Slipknot_ are fucking awesome, huh?”

But Jack barely managed to finish as Sallie threw herself back into the mosh-pit, trying to direct her throws and pushes to the other side of the mosh-pit. Her shoulder butted a few of the taller punk rockers around her, and she saw a flash of purple, Jack lunging himself at her.

_Get away from me!_

Jack looked up and was smiling, laughing, unable to see the mounting ferocity in Sallie’s expression. She pushed him away from her, trying to imply it as part of the mosh-pit, when really, she was just trying to get away, trying to come back to Barbie and Liv.

And on the stage above her, IOWA’s eyes flashed in livid, disturbing hatred.

Barbie and Liv noticed Sallie trying to get through the mosh-pit, her eyes pitched with utter terror, and immediately they hurried to the edge of the mosh-pit, their arms reaching out to grab Sallie-

A bulking figure of a large-bellied man blocked between them, and he threw Sallie back into the mosh-pit, keeping the momentum up. Through the blurs, Sallie saw purple in the midst of reds and blues, and she knew Jack was far from her, but at the same time, it was only going to be a moment before he-

“Got ‘cha!” Jack piped up happily, his hands grabbing onto Sallie’s shoulders from behind. He laughed, high and spirited.

“Get off!” Sallie screamed, swinging her arms back and tried to pull the man off her. Their feet stumbled against other rampaging shoes, and Sallie collapsed under the sea of legs and stamping boots. She tried to get up quickly, to save herself from the barrage of feet, but someone had stood on her hair, holding her down, and she screamed, hands clutching at her hair in panic as she tried to-

A boot kicked her ribs by accident, and Sallie winced, feeling Jack collapsing on her legs, and unintentionally pinned her down. “Stop it! Help, wait up!” Sallie shouted, but her voice was drowned by the furious thunder of drums and guitars. A knee knocked into the back of her head and she cried out again.

Thankfully, the storming figure of the seven-foot TORQUE was standing behind Sallie, his body hunching down to protect her from the rampaging rockers, and hollering those around him a halting command, causing nearby members to stop and help her up, pulling Jack with them too. Practically holding Sallie against his chest, TORQUE walked through the mosh-pit, his massive stature and presence almost seemed to make the mosh-pit part ways. He approached towards where Barbie and Liv sat, and he placed Sallie down.

“You okay?” TORQUE asked, looking at her to see no damage.

“Yeah, yeah. Just startled.” Sallie murmured, a hand rubbing the back of her head.

“I’ll get you some water.” TORQUE patted her shoulder. “You want ice?”

“I’ll survive.” Sallie smirked faintly, and the bodyguard left the three ladies alone to get water, allowing Liv and Barbie to care for Sallie.

At last, the midway break for _Slipknot’s_ show began, giving the band-members a moment to cool off and drink before resuming their performance.

Chris was the first to hurry towards the girls, his long nose flopping comically as he ran.

“Sal! Sal, I saw what happened!” He cried out, squatting down before her and placed a hand on her knee. She could see the black paint behind his phallic-nosed mask glistening with sweat, making it look rather dazzling in the dim light. “You okay, man?”

“Yeah…I’ll be fine…j-just dizzy…”

“You took a nasty fall.” Chris informed, his hand stroking her knee. And then he wagged a finger at her. “You’re not going in the mosh-pit again, young lady.”

“But _daaaad_ ,” Sallie cooed back playfully, a small weak giggle left her and she winced. “It hurts to laugh.”

“Well, don’t look at Shawn. His face is funny.”

Sallie giggled again, flinching and moaning lowly.

“ _Stoooop!_ It hurts!” She whined in a soft laugh, shaking her head.

“You stay here, okay.” Chris instructed, his voice a little more serious now. “The crowd out there are a little more violent.”

Feeling dizzier suddenly, Sallie closed her eyes and rested her face in her hands, trying to calm her dizzy spells.

Jack had finally figured out where he was, the light little drinks got to his head again pretty quickly, and everything seemed far brighter, far fluid. He wasn’t completely drunk, but he could feel himself getting there. From a distance, he noticed one of the percussionists squatting before a distressed Sallie, and he frowned.

_Oh shit…is she okay?_

Jack only barely managed to take a few steps before a body suddenly got in his way. A dark black jumpsuit. And when Jack looked up, his eyes sparkled to see the lead singer of _Slipknot_ standing before him. The masked man smiled at him.

“Hey Jack, I heard you wanted an autograph from me?”

_Really? Since when? Maybe I did?_

Jack’s eyes widened, his smile stretching more as he eyed up the dreadlocked man.

“Oh, I think? But…pfft! Sure, I’ll have your autograph, dude!”

The singer nodded his head towards the bathroom further down.

“Let’s go to the bathroom. The light is better in there.”

“S-Sure!” Jack smiled and began to stumble towards the bathroom.

IOWA watched him hard, a cynical smirk under the blackness of his mask, and he followed him with long, slow strides.

Just as expected, the bathrooms were empty. Everyone was either getting drinks or smoking outside. Jack stumbled towards the sink counter, his hands scrambling in his black, skinny jean pockets. “I-I think I have a pen in here-”

Jack felt an indescribable force pushed against his throat, and promptly he was pinned against the corner of the room, his pupils dinted to see that the masked singer had no intentions in a friendly signing session. Instead, he looked so…

“Hey!” Jack’s trembling hands reached at the forearm of IOWA, watching the man with mute-terror growing in his huge eyes.

“Right, you little fucker.” IOWA snarled through clenched teeth, his eyes hard and sharp in the eyeholes of his mask. “I’m gonna give you this one fucking warning…” Holding a finger up, IOWA spoke warningly. “Stay the fuck _away_ from my Sallie. She is my little angel, my fucking _everything_ , and I don’t need a little fucking turd like _you_ taking all of the fucking credit of my hard work.”

Shaking his head hard, Jack spat in panic:

“I-I don’t understand what you mean!”

“Of course you fucking don’t, you useless little fuckwit!” IOWA was shouting now, the heavy music outside the bathroom muffled his bellows. IOWA leaned close to Jack’s face, the stench of cigarette smoke and alcohol burnt through Jack’s nostrils. “Sallie is _mine_. I don’t need her thinking about you!”

“A-Are you that Corey guy?” Jack managed to hiss, his black brows knitting. “She’s not your fucking girlfriend! I’ve been trying to get her to understand that-”

A small noise emitted in the bathroom, echoing in Jack’s ears, and all of his words seized when he caught a glimmer of something sharp.

IOWA was holding a small pocket-knife, holding it between his and Jack’s face. Tilting his head forward, the dreadlocks swaying, Jack watched with quivering lips to see the masked man’s eyes vanish in the black cavities of his mask.

“I will fucking slice your throat and fuck the wound if you don’t fucking back off. _Leave_ her alone, she is mine! My angel! My fucking precious little princess!”

“She’s my _friend_!”

“ _Leave her alone!_ ” IOWA shrieked in absolute wrath, the glint of a psychopath bright in his snarl, his breathing deep grunts of frustration. His voice hoarse and so cruel, it crippled Jack’s insides hard, frightening him. IOWA pushed his body harder against Jack, strangling the young man’s throat with his forearm, which completely refused to move against Jack’s protests. Now Jack was choking. When IOWA leaned close to Jack’s ear, he whispered harshly: “I _really really_ want to stab you right now…y’know? Because of your fucking _obsessiveness_ of her, now she thinks my fucking love letters are from _you_ , and she’s _so_ terrified of them now. A work of beauty and love that _you_ fucking ruined…” Pointing the tip of the pocket-knife in Jack’s jugular, IOWA pushed a slight bit of pressure against the flesh, warning him. “But she is _my_ Eve, and I am her Adam. _You’re_ the fucking snake I will fucking kill if you don’t fucking _leave! Her! Alone!_ ”

“Y-You’re fucking insane!” Came out the frightened squeak, Jack trying to thrash out from IOWA’s iron hold, but the blade slightly pierced his flesh, and Jack cried out. IOWA saw the fresh, bright tear of blood leaving the open wound.

“No. I’m not. I’m fucking IOWA.” His eyes glided to the knife, and back at Jack’s eyes. “I could fucking kill you now…” Jack felt IOWA’s fingers readjusting against the handle hard beside his ear, preparing a stab. “But I know my _Eve_ would not want me to do that.”

Yanking the blade away from Jack’s throat, Jack barely managed to sigh in relief when IOWA threw him onto the ground, stomping his dirtied sneakers onto his ribs, a powerful stomp that was close in breaking Jack’s ribs. “Leave my Eve alone, _Snake_ …”

Jack whimpered, scrambling out from beneath IOWA’s foot, his hands thrashing at the floor and he fled out of the bathroom, black tears streaking down from his face. Jack slipped through the busy crowd by the bar and vanished through the doors.

He never set foot in that club ever again.


	40. Mental Advice

14th February 1995

Valentine’s Day. Sallie had been partly excited for this, and the other part was absolutely terrified. After that night in the _Hotel California_ , she hadn’t heard from Jack. He hasn’t even sent her a text message, which was a bitter relief. She felt as though he was being incredibly clingy, and some of the comments he spat at her, mostly about Corey, really angered her. So, when she got no frantic text message bundle from him, she was pleasantly surprised.

Sallie managed to get her presents ready for Corey, and not expecting anything in return, which was okay with her. She eventually came to terms that no matter what she got for Corey; it was the thought _behind_ it. She was just relieved she got something for him.

Roses came to her nose the moment she woke up, coming off so strong, which confused her for a moment. She hadn’t used that rose-scent bubble bath last night, and this time it felt so much more _real_ -

Red caught the corner of her eyes, and she rolled over on the bed and saw a small bouquet at fresh roses in a small vase. Her eyes widened, sitting up slowly to see them sitting there. A note hung from it. Corey wasn’t in bed.

_Fuck…are these for me?_

Shuffling to the edge of the bed, Sallie reached for the note, her heart fluttering as she opened the little card.

_Jodie, I love you._

_Your Snu-Snu, Corey X_

The fluttering stopped, and the world felt much cloudier, much more colder, _darker_.

But Sallie felt no rage or jealousy behind it. Disappointment was what she could feel, a lump in her throat building. Slowly, she placed the note back by the roses, registering that the sentimental bunch of flowers were not for her, but for a woman that was not worth Corey’s love.

_He still loves her…_

_But how?! How the fuck?! You need to fucking confront him about this!_

_No…I can’t…_

_Why the fucking hell not?!_

_I don’t have the mental strength for that…_

_But Sal-!_

Even her own conscious thoughts couldn’t convince her to confront Corey about this. She didn’t understand this man’s absolute affection towards Jodie, how someone could cling onto a toxic person and still feel valued as a human.

Has he forgotten what Jodie’s brother done to her?

Even if Sallie weren’t the victim, how could a wonderful human like Corey be wanting to return to someone so cruel, so selfish and disgusting?

_I don’t fucking understand people…_

Valentine’s Day didn’t seem very important to her anymore. Corey clearly had intentions of meeting Jodie again. Possibly ready to try and propose to her…

Her insight now destroyed, Sallie dragged herself out of bed and dressed slowly, her eyes never leaving the floor, as if the pressure of her mind inside her skull would hold back any potential tears that threatened her.

When she left the bedroom, she noticed the apartment looking a little bit hectic. Sallie stared sadly at the empty bottles that gathered together in front of the sofa. Evidence of a sorrowful Corey. And yet, no Corey…

“Corey?” Sallie decided to call out, knowing the pressing silence of an empty, depressed apartment all too well.

No reply.

No echo. No response, as always. Sallie smiled dejectedly. “I love you…” She murmured sorrowfully to herself, knowing she will never say those words again. Might as well say it to four empty walls. “I’m going out, I’ll catch you later…”

Gathering her keys, phone and wallet, she tucked them into her pocket and left the apartment, feeling more hurt closing the door.

* * *

Hot chocolate in a mug, her small digits wrapped around it and clenched the hot red mug firmly. She rested her forehead onto it, eyes closed, trying to figure herself out as calmly and as gently as possible. But the more she was thinking of it, the more questions returned, and the _same_ questions she thought she had answers to suddenly rose, and she was swiftly assaulted with a variety of questions she didn’t needed. She didn’t want any of it.

Sallie sat by the white, square table alone in _Mars Sidebar_ , a café she had walked past several times. She never had the chance to try it out. But today, it seemed that everyone was either out in the parks and movies with their dates, or probably fucking their brains out, for the café was quiet, with a small handful of people sitting inside with her.

_I should be dating Corey today…I should have fucking asked him to date me DAYS before._

But Sallie realised it was pointless at this moment. Corey had already registered his intentions in trying to get back with Jodie…but _why?_ That’s what angered her the most. _He_ broke up with _her_ , and he bought her flowers, and-

_Those flowers should have been fucking MINE!_

The anger simmered off her mind, and promptly replaced it was the sorrow. But it wasn’t _just_ sorrow…it was that dangerously dark depression that had finally stabbed its claws into her back, yanking her back and whispered in her ear:

**I̷̞̔’̵̖͊M̵͈̒ ̸͕̕B̷̯̎A̴͕͂C̴̰̔K̶̼̋,,̵̺͊ ̵͍̈F̷̟̄Ű̸̟C̸̨̑K̷̪̚Ē̵͎R̸͍̕**

Everything began to hurt. Her eyes shut tighter, her hands holding the mug hard, feeling the scorching heat from the cup and wanting it to shatter in her hand again-

Instead, Sallie relaxed her fingers and intensely began to drink her hot chocolate, her teeth aching against the hot sweetness.

_Oh Corey…You fucking idiot…_

As Sallie mulled over her best friend’s questionable functions, a woman entered the café. Unlike the majority of the residents in Des Moines, she was eccentric by nature. If her clothes didn’t take you back in surprise, her actions certainly did. Never seemingly to stay still, fidgeting with the rings that decorated her small fingers, she looked around excitingly. A simple black eyepatch shielded her right eye, only revealing her left, chocolate-brown eye. One too many fights got her to severely damage her right eye. Thick, long black hair was messily tucked beneath her black beanie, a variety of ear piercings hemmed the shell of her ears. Highly decorated, like a walking piece of art. _Bizarre_ art. She was used to the older generation to give her funny looks, but she held an air of carelessness, and _pride_. Around her neck was two sets of jewellery, a small chain necklace and a spiked choker. Skinny jeans clung onto her slender legs, her baggy black shirt far too bit for her.

The new customer slammed her palm onto the bell, leaning against the counter and scanned around the room. The Waitress promptly arrived, and when the drink was ordered, the Waitress turned and left the customer to her own thoughts.

The customer looked around the room again, her head nodding as if she was listening to music. She had no headphones.

“Mmm?” Her interest piqued when she saw Sallie sitting alone by the table, staring at the warm brown hot chocolate in her drink. She looked so lonely sitting there, but what really caught the woman’s attention was her t-shirt.

Excitement welled inside of the woman’s eyes, and she held her arm up in a dramatic fashion, pointing directly at Sallie and shouted at the top of her voice:

“Ladies! We got someone with good taste in music!”

The abrupt shout almost made Sallie choke on her hot chocolate, coughing into her palm when her toxic thoughts silenced almost everything, and when Sallie spun around in her chair, prepared to glare angrily at the loud-mouthed announcer, her face blanched when she realised the strange woman was pointing at Sallie.

_Oh, for fuck sake…I didn’t realise Iowa’s fucking circus was here!_

And at that moment, Sallie felt her temper shimmering at the surface of her mind when the woman ran towards Sallie’s table, radically slamming her hands onto the table and leaned down at Sallie, forcing the Brit to lean back into her seat as much as she can. “Hello there! My fellow _KoRn_ lover! I’m gonna be your new mate by the name of Rose!”

Sallie opened her mouth to protest, but watched as this new face, Rose, helped herself to the empty seat before Sallie, and studied Sallie closely with a wide smile and huge eyes, examining Sallie as if she was a rare artefact.

“Uh…what the fuck is wrong with you?” Sallie’s eyes flicked around her, showing to the startled customers around her that she had _no_ idea who this person was. She was either off her face with something…or just naturally fucking crazy. But something clicked in Sallie’s thoughts. She wasn’t American…if anything, Sallie heard a familiar British accent.

“Well, I have too many things the _fuck_ wrong with _me_ , but what sparked my inner-demon was that sexy _KoRn_ shirt of yours, m’lady!” After Rose began to fiddle with her choker, she leaned down towards Sallie again, her voice dropping from the shouting to an eerie whisper. “Mind if I wear that shirt of yours?”

Sinking lower in her seat, a little taken back by such a question, Sallie slowly shook her head. “Uh…it’s sorta the only shirt I have on…so no?”

“Hmm.” Rose theatrically threw herself back into the seat. “Maybe…maybe we can… _exchange!_ ” She pointed at her shirt and Sallie’s shirt. “My shirt for yours!”

Sallie waved her hands, shaking her head more aggressively then.

“N-No, no…” At that point, Sallie watched as the waitress approached them, placing a cup of coffee onto the table, smiling at Rose.

“Here’s your drink, ma’am.” And turned away and left them, almost as if to abandon Sallie with this crazy stranger. Rose looked at the coffee, a disgruntled expression on her face and she turned around in her seat suddenly.

“A fucking mocha?! Hey, do you think I’m even 40 years of age?! I asked for a motherfucking slushie, not a mocha! Do you want me to burn my fucking insides?”

Sallie stared at Rose in mute-horror, her hands gripping onto the arms of the chair, uncertain what to do with herself. This woman was fucking bat-shit crazy, so odd and just ridiculous…but at least there was someone here that accepted themselves to be unique, and not just follow with the same shitty crowd here in Des Moines.

_Wow…_

Rose rapidly looked back at Sallie, her lips stretching into a huge beam. “Well, my new _British_ friend, I guess you can have this.” She announced, pushing the mocha towards Sallie, who refused to move from where she had sunk.

“Uh…so…” Sallie began, forcing a faint smile, hesitant and squirming. “Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be in…y’know, _England_?”

Rose’s eyes went huge, and Sallie feared for a moment that she had offended this wild woman. Taking a huge breath, wheezing, Rose spoke…or more like shouted anyway.

“Do you _really_ think someone like me would live in such a dull place?!”

_She isn’t wrong there…_

A weak smile escaped Sallie, one of spoke how relatable that statement was to her.

“Pfft, yeah. You’re not wrong there…when you move from England, and then live in California for a bit…and then you move _here_ , in shitty Iowa, where it’s basically England except its overrun by old grumpy people and cars drive the other way around…and the accent is more tolerable…”

Rose noticed the cynical tone in Sallie’s voice, and she ruffled her beanie around, readjusting it back to where it was before she moved it.

“I should be saying that Iowa is a great place for me to roam around.” Rose sniggered, a deep smug sparking on her face. Sallie had to admit, despite this woman’s weird behaviour, Sallie found herself to feel rather charmed by it. It was intriguing.

“True, true…” Sallie agreed, a soft giggle leaving her nose. “I mean, I’d rather live here than fucking England…I’ve met some great people, and finally got the best friend I could ever ask for…” For a time, Sallie wasn’t sure whether she should introduce herself, but seeing Rose watching her so intensely, Sallie figured there was no point in hiding. “I’m…Sallie, by the way.” Sallie added, placing a hand on her chest. The mention of her name seemed to have thrilled Rose even more, as she began to tap her shoes madly onto the laminated floor.

“Oh my god! Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, _OH MY GOD! Hi Sallie_!” She cried out inexplicably, waving at Sallie’s face like a child on skittles. “I’m Rose and I fucking _love_ your shirt!”

And what Rose was about to do bewildered Sallie. The woman stood up, grabbed her chair and lifted it over her head, as if she were about to hurl the chair to the other side of the café and let out a battle-scream from the caveman era. But Sallie stood up quickly, grabbing the chair and forcing it back onto the floor.

“Wait, wait! Wait! Heh, I don’t think…they’d accept that here…” Sallie murmured, looking around the café to see the customers and waitress glaring at the pair. Sallie frowned at this, rubbing her hands and decided what to do next. “You wanna…walk and talk, maybe? I could…do with a distraction.” Flashing a small, sad smile, Sallie knew that she wouldn’t show her face to this café for a long, _long_ time.

Rose glared at Sallie, long and hard, for a full minute, leaving Sallie to hang on and believe she had deeply insulted Rose. But then when Rose gave Sallie a crazy, wide smile, Sallie sighed in relief.

“ _Suuuuuure_!”

_This woman’s on fucking crack…or possessed…or on fucking skittles…or a drug CALLED Skittles!_

Flashing everyone an apologetic smile, Sallie turned and left the café with Rose, never looking back as she hurried down the sidewalk, with Rose following her, skipping after every couple of steps. There was no normality in this woman. She waltzed around and acted so whimsical; it was rather inspiring.

“So, um…Rose…” Sallie began. “How long have you lived here?”

“I’ve been here for… _uhhh_ …” Rose tapped her chin. “Three years now?” She flashed another grin, a grin that seemed so hard that Sallie was waiting for her teeth to shatter.

“Three years, huh?” Sallie replied, enjoying the soft, cool breeze on her face as cars drove beside them. “That’s quite a while. I’ve been here for about six years now….”

“Six years?! You must be a _veteran_!” Rose howled laughing, tilting her head to the sky and hollered a bright, manic laugh.

“A veteran…” Came the soft repeat, making Sallie smile slightly. “Yeah, I guess you _could_ call me that…consider all of the bullshit I had to deal with…” For a time, Sallie thought, thinking back to Corey and everything she had been through with him, how all of those moments she had with him seemed so much more vibrant, so much more important compared to what she went through before she met him. “My…fucking best friend should be my boyfriend…if only I had the damn fucking balls to ask him…” Sallie folded her arms across her chest, a small shred of darkness running in her eyes. “Now he’s latched onto some toxic bitch he broke up with…and suddenly wants to go out with her and just…” Sallie stopped, shaking her head in severe disappointment. “You know how fucking crazy that-” Sallie glanced at Rose, realising that she was talking to _crazy_ incarnate, and looked back, her frown deepened. “You probably do…”

Rose skipped before Sallie and halted, making Sallie stop as she looked at Rose. The strange woman cocked her head from side to side, looking at Sallie’s expression, seeing the frown.

“ _Soooo_ , like, is that miserable face gonna _fuckity_ fuck, fuck away, or do I need to cut it off?”

For any normal person to hear that, they would possibly freak out and call the police onto Rose. But Sallie studied her for a time, and figured that, like herself and _Slipknot_ , Rose was lost in a world that she didn’t belong to also, and instead of hiding in the shadows and be shamed for who she was, Rose seemed to indulge on her strange behaviour, and it was remarkably enlightening. To see someone who was not taken down by this miserable world.

No threat lined her comment, and Sallie flashed a cynical smile at Rose.

“If you can fucking cut Jodie’s fucking face off, I’ll probably be a bit happier…”

The mention of Jodie seemed to have sparked something inside of Rose, and Rose’s face flourished in a mixture of eccentric expressions, from shock and horror, to frowning, and then deep contemplation. Rose shut her eyes for a time, tapping her temple and nodding to her thoughts before she spoke to Sallie again.

“I _see_! I _thought_ you were who I thought you were!” Rose piped up, her eyes shining as if she had discovered new life. “You’re that damn Sallie Knight Corey keeps talking about!”

“What?!” Sallie blurted out.

“Lemme guess, my effeminate fellow!” Rose grinned, hanging her arm over Sallie’s shoulders and began to walk across the road. “It’s that _Jodiiiie_ going with your crush? A Mister Corey _Tayloooor_!”

“Y-Yes!” Sallie stammered, taken back by this sudden revelation Rose revealed. It was freaky how she suddenly seemed to know Sallie’s main issue without much answers. “How did you-?”

“If my calculations are _correct_ , you hate Jodie! I mean,” She snorted. “People really do not like Jodie. She is a _fake_ _SLAG_!” Rose screamed the insult at the top of her lungs, and Sallie caught a few intrigued and confused stares from other people nearby.

“Well…y-yeah, Corey is my best friend…and Jodie…” Sallie rolled her eyes cynically, hating that she was mentioning that name again, when once she thought she wouldn’t have to think about her again. She decided against talking about the wench, and instead talk about the more important subject in this conversation. “You know Corey then?”

Rose gave Sallie a massive smirk, one of pride.

“ _Ahhh_ , yes! Corey Taylor. The wee fella who runs to me for _mental advice_!”

“Mental advice?”

Rose held a finger up to Sallie to shut her up, and her eyes squinted. Sallie waited.

And finally, Rose howled a tremendous sneeze, rubbing her nose and clearing her throat with a cough.

“Mhm, yes! _Absolutely_!” Rose piped up, turning Sallie down another path and they began walking through _Pappajohn Sculpture Park_ , the grass was bright and dry under the gorgeous sun. A few butterflies danced in the air nearby, clustering together by flowers. “The fella always wants my advice when he _knows_ something shit is gonna slap him right in the _baby_ face!”

“Huh…” Sallie nodded slowly, her eyes dropping and looking round, Rose still had her arm over Sallie’s shoulder, holding her close by her. A pessimistic smile tugged the end of Sallie’s lips. “I bet he bitches about Jodie…or me.”

“Bitches? Oh no, no, no! He doesn’t bitch! He just…” Rose frowned, stabbing her finger against her forehead in intense thinking. “What’s the fucking word, Rose?” And then, like a light bulb switching on, Rose sparked up suddenly. “Ah yes! He just talks about you in a _lustful_ way!”

Sallie emitted a stupid laugh, a combination of surprise and doubt, blinking a few times and looked at Rose.

“Uh…’lustful way’?” Sallie quoted, holding her fingers in air-quotations. “Like what?”

“Like…” Rose tilted her head, thinking again. “ _Her eyes are really cute_.” She tilted her head the other way. “ _If only I’d be able to just fuck her again_.”

Sallie thought for a moment, scratching her hair.

“I…If he asked those sort of questions…then why would he come back to Jodie? I…saw some roses on the side with a card to the bitch, and I just…” Abruptly, Sallie looked pained, and it was the first time Rose looked a little serious, watching as her new friend crumbled at whatever thought scattered through her. Rose watched as Sallie battled through emotions in her eyes. “Don’t…know if I’m wasting my time or…if he’s just…I don’t know, not interested in me…”

“ _Salllliiiee_!” Rose burst out unexpectedly, slapping a hand hard onto Sallie’s back. “That’s just Corey! I’m sure he’s told you about the orgys he went in!” Rose chuckled, shaking her head at the memory. “Corey’s a complicated man!”

The scent of freshly cut grass lifted in Sallie’s nose, and the Brit was silent for a time. Rose had a point, and despite only barely knowing her, she made Sallie’s eyes see the bigger picture.

Finally, shrugging sadly, Sallie looked back at Rose.

“What…the fuck _can_ I do now?” Sallie asked, now seeking for this mental advice Corey seemed to ask from this woman. “I’ve bought him a card, a valentine’s gift…I just want to show him my feelings for him…”

“Well, Corey is the type of guy to…” Rose frowned again, now punching the side of her skull, as if doing so would help her thoughts come back. “What’s the _fucking word_ , Rose? Think, _please!_ ” Sallie watched as Rose tightly shut her eyes, and as expected, she sprung into life. “Ah! He’s just the type of guy to grab a girl…I don’t know how, but he has his _ways_ ,” Rose beamed, wagging her finger right up Sallie’s face. “Don’t try doing shit for him. _You_ just gotta wait!”

“Gotta wait?” Sallie whined. This wasn’t what she wanted to hear. “But that’s all I ever seem to be doing. I’m scared in case I miss my chance with him.”

“Chance? Bro, that’s what every single fucking girl says. I mean…” Rose circled around Sallie as they walked. Rose’s actions were questionable, and while Sallie felt a little on edge with how frantic and wild she was, it was certainly entertaining. “If you’re _that_ desperate, then you can just tell him in advance, I guess?”

“But…” Sallie stalled, uncertain where this conversation was even going. “I’ve got his Valentines gift ready and wanted to give it to him today, but then I saw those roses he got for Jodie and…y-you don’t think that’s a bit weird for a friend to give him a present, right?”

Rose cracked her knuckles, tilting her head to the sky.

“ _Nooooow_ , how is that _weird_?” She threw her head back down, looking at Sallie intensely. “There’s been girls bringing him sex toys and you’re calling _this_ weird?” Rose pointed at Sallie.

“I just don’t want to…ruin anything. Not gonna lie, Rose, but I _really fucking_ like him. I want to be his girlfriend…and yet I can’t take that initial step. I could hint, but-”

“Oh yeah! Hint! Trying hinting him in ways like: _Asking him out on dates!_ ”

Sallie shook her head madly.

“But I want to be _subtle_ about it. If I’m too overpowering, it could scare him off and ruin our friendship, and make everything awkward!” Frustration lined her words, and rubbing her face, Sallie murmured. “Am I not making any fucking sense?”

_Am I the only one fucking making sense here…or is Rose pointing out that I’m not making sense at all…?_

“Look.” Sallie glared at Rose through her fingers, seeing Rose looking somewhat serious for a moment. “If you’re so worried about him, you need to signal to him how much you care for him. Basically, something a girlfriend would do for their boyfriend.”

Rubbing her head, Sallie shut her eyes and tried to understand what any of this meant. Maybe she was overthinking it. Maybe she should just go ahead…

“I need to find my window of opportunity and just grab him there…All I ever seem to do is pick up the broken pieces Jodie creates. But I need to be the light at the end of the tunnel for Corey, regardless in what happens.”

“That’s the spirit!” Rose piped up, smiling.

“I’ll do my best, at least…just, _scared_ , y’know.” Sallie paused, looking at the park for a moment with narrow eyes, pondering. “I don’t even know where he is at the moment…”

“Uh, _message him?_ ”

Sallie glanced at Rose, and realising what she said made sense, Sallie grabbed her phone and texted Corey:

_Where are you buttlord?_

“Hmm, I hope he’s okay…” Sallie murmured, keeping hold of her phone in hopes that Corey would reply soon. Rose grinned again, patting Sallie’s back a little too hard.

“Don’t worry, I know he’d the type of person to get into trouble, then he slides out of them _easily_ …”

“He’s a fucking complicated idiot…but he’s my best friend and I fucking love him.” Sallie nodded, a soft smile finally pulling at her lips. “Thanks Rose, it’s nice to talk to someone else about this issue who…hasn’t really heard of it time and time again.” Her phone buzzed, and Sallie glanced at her screen. “He says he’s at home…”

“ _Weeeellll_ , go to him!”

“What?! Like now?!”

“Yes, now!” Rose declared, spinning Sallie around and began to push her down the path, which was the wrong direction to home.

“Okay, okay, fine!” Sallie giggled, spinning herself out of the push and faced Rose. “I’ll go to him. Uh…thank you so much, Rose, for like, _this_. It’s helped me weirdly. You’re batshit crazy, but I like you.” Sallie grinned, pushing her phone into her pocket. “Hey, maybe you should come down to _Hotel California_ one night and watch _Slipknot_ play. We go there practically every weekend!”

Rose’s eyes lit up, and she let out a squeal, hopping on the spot in excitement like a child on Christmas.

“Oh! Yes! Yes, yes please!”

“Seriously, you’ll like our bunch. We’re fucking crazy, but I think you’ll fit right in!”

“Count me in!” Rose practically screamed, her delight flourishing, and it was a sight that Sallie enjoyed. There had always been some sentimental sense of self-reward when she made someone happy. Maybe that’s why she religiously tries to take care of Corey. Seeing him smile is what she lived for.

“Great! Here, take my number!”

Rose snatched her phone out of her pocket and began to manically type in Sallie’s number. Once they’ve exchanged numbers, Sallie turned towards home.

“Right, okay, my Faith needs me now. I’ll go and see that dickhead. Once again, thanks for today. I really enjoyed hanging out with you.”

“Ehh, no worries. I’ll see you later! Oh, I swear down if that little bitch Taylor got a haircut, I’ll slap him up, down, left and _right!_ ”

Sallie gave Rose a stiff smile, and Rose spied the glint of mischief in her eyes.

“Corey is probably gonna die then when you see him.” Rose narrowed her eyes at Sallie, watching as Sallie waved, walking off. “I’ll catch you later, Rose.”

“Yeah yeah, smell yer later, Sallie-Wallie!” Rose smiled, eagerly waving back at her new friend.


	41. Valentine

Sallie’s keys rattled against the door, twisting the lock and opening the apartment door, walking in.

“Hello.” Sallie called out automatically, something she always did to announce her arrival.

“Sal! Hey!” Corey’s voice piped up from the bathroom. “I’m having a shit!”

“Pfft, thanks for that, Big Ben!” Sallie sniggered as she closed the door, approaching the sunken sofa and crashed onto it. There, she relaxed, trying to figure herself out. Her eyes lowered to see more empty bottles scattered by the TV. “You’ve been drinking?” She called out, a fabric of dissatisfaction in her voice.

“Only a little swig here and there!” Corey called out. Sallie rolled her eyes, looking at the bottles…

Her eyes pinned onto a floorboard that bulked slightly beneath the thin carpet under the coffee table. Shuffling to the edge of the sofa, she leaned down, grabbing it and tried to pull it up.

_This is weird…_

Instead of making it worse, Sallie slowly positioned it back onto the gap, and with a lift of her boot, she slammed it down, kicking the floorboard back into place.

_There. Better._

“Aww, fuck Sal, this shit is killing me!” The cries of a distressed, shitting Corey rose from the bathroom.

“I’m not coming in there to save you this time!” Sallie pointed out loudly, glaring at the door. “Last time I did I almost fucking died!”

“But hey, for Queen and Country, huh?”

“No, President Clit. I don’t have a Queen anymore.” Sallie snorted, sitting up straight. “I’m born as a Brit, but I’m an American citizen.” Posing a hand by her temple in a salute, she sang the American Anthem: “ _Oh, say can you see, by the Corey’s hard shit!_ ”

“ _What so proudly we hailed at Sallie’s bitchiness!_ ” Corey continued, laughing.

“You better be fucking saluting in there!”

“I’m trying to wipe my ass!”

“You actually _wipe_ your ass?”

“I’ll fucking sit on your face!”

“Oh, kinky!”

She heard Corey laughing, standing up from the sofa. She loved the banter between them, how natural it came out, and for a moment she had forgotten about the storm she discovered this morning. Sallie approached the door, turning the door-handle and knowing Corey had not locked it, and pushed it open, walking away before he could see her.

“Hey!” Corey bellowed, knowing Sallie had walked away to the kitchen. “Close the door!”

“Nah, mate!”

“Stupid Brit!”

“Fat American!” Sallie began to prepare herself for a coffee, noticing another spray of flowers in a vase. This time, it was colourful, blushes of pastels purples and pinks, and bright yellows and reds. Artificially coloured, but it was exquisitely appealing, and the sight of it made Sallie feel a rock settling in her chest.

_Oh yeah…that…_

A pair of hands appeared at both sides of Sallie’s head and ran over her face. They were wet.

“I didn’t wash my hands and touched my willy!” Corey announced jokingly, making Sallie cry out and slap his hands away. Thankfully, it was only water.

“Get your gross ass vinegar fingers away from me!” Sallie rubbed her palms over her face dry, sniggering. “Fucking dickweed.”

“So, missy, where were you? I was hoping I could have snuck out and come back to you still asleep.” Corey asked, leaning against the counter and looked at his little friend with a smug smirk.

“Uh, well, I woke up and saw you were gone, so I figured you were busy today…decided to go for a walk. Oh! I’ve met Rose!”

“Rose?” Corey repeated, blinking, and realising who she was talking about. The one and only Rose. “Oh! Oh yes, she’s fucking insane, but I love her!”

“I know, right? I was…a bit intimidated but I love her too. So wild and fun.”

“Oh, she is.” Corey nodded. “She helped me and the guys with our masks, actually.”

Sallie grinned at this.

“That would make sense.” Sallie said. “So, she made IOWA?”

“Well, I made IOWA, but she helped designed the prototype of it. And the first version.”

“There’s a first version of IOWA?”

Corey pouted thoughtfully, squinting his eyes.

“Well, _not_ exactly of IOWA, but the first version of my own identity…in a sense.”

“Hmm…” Sallie nodded, suddenly losing her train of thought. She glanced at the flowers and was trying so painfully hard to hold back the cynical remark she was about to fire. But instead, she decided to bite the bullet. “Corey…” Her fingers began to fidget. “I saw the roses…”

Corey looked down at Sallie for a time and clicked what she meant.

“Oh fuck, you saw them…”

“Hm.” Sallie hummed, evidently unimpressed.

“Sal, I can explain-”

“No, I get it.” Sallie butted in, a little too sharply. “She means a lot to you.”

“I _thought_ that too…but…” Corey sighed, stepping back a little bit, and Sallie noticed the hurt in his eyes. Pointing at the bedroom door, he explained: “Listen, I bought those roses for her today because…I don’t know, I thought I could fix it again. I was getting ready and…I saw you.” He gave Sallie a sad smile, which intrigued the little Brit slightly. But still bitter, Sallie shrugged.

“So?”

“So, I didn’t give them to her in the end.”

Sallie’s bitterness lifted then, and misunderstanding wrote across her face.

“You…didn’t?”

“Nah. I realise that she is…just making my life difficult. She’s been an addiction to me I couldn’t bear leaving. I felt… _wanted_ , even if that attention was so negative. I was so afraid of being alone…” Corey’s gaze fell to his shoes. “But when I looked at you, all that time I thought I was alone wasn’t true. I had you.” His azure eyes glanced back to Sallie, and he smiled feebly. “I knew I was wasting my time with her. I left those roses to…” He shrugged. “I don’t know, maybe prank Mick with them and pretend to be some gay admirer.”

“That…huh…” Sallie was taken back, having no real comment on what Corey explained. “You didn’t see her then?”

“Nah.” Corey shook his head. “I went out cancelling the movie date I had planned, the dinner date-”

“Take Joey with you! You guys can be gay together!”

Corey snorted, glaring at Sallie mischievously.

“You fangirls and your gay-fantasies!”

“You watched fucking lesbian porn the other night!”

“So? I’m a man! I’m allowed!”

“I’m straight but shut it!”

Corey burst out laughing again, high and spirited, and it soothed the distress that was failing to filter out of Sallie’s chest. When the laughter calmed down, Corey sighed, his smile faltering slightly.

“What I was trying to say is that I’ve been gawking at the wrong woman.” Corey took a step closer, watching her with gentle eyes. “I should have been treating you as a fucking princess for putting up with my shit.”

Sallie looked up at Corey, his body so close to hers, and her lips twitched, wanting to kiss him instinctively.

“That’s what we do for each other.” Sallie mewed softly. “We look after each other, regardless of what happened.”

Corey leaned down, pressing his forehead onto Sallie’s forehead.

“Seriously, thank you, Sal.”

Sallie smiled warmly at the sentimental words. Delicately, she lifted her hands onto his chest and pressed into him, nestling her face into his chest, and Corey held onto her.

“Thank you too, Corey. You’ve helped me more than you realise.”

Corey grunted quietly, unconvinced.

“How? All I do is give you grief.”

Sallie looked up from his chest.

“Corey.” Corey looked down at her command. “I haven’t thought of suicide since living here…” Corey’s eyes widened, a sudden pang of hurt in his stunning eyes.

“You…”

“Corey, I was in a very dark place before I met you and the gang…and since being with you…you’ve been…” Sallie’s face began to crumble, crippling at reopening a wound. But at least it was on her terms. “You’ve been the only light…that…I…” A hand lifted to her eyes and she tried to stop the tears, her small fingers shaking as she choked. “…I ever…wanted…I didn’t think…I’d make it past…Christmas…”

Corey clutched onto Sallie as if his life depended on it, holding the woman against his chest. He said nothing, but they both knew nothing needed to be said. Sallie listened to his heartbeat, feeling it being so alive beneath his shirt, his breathing deep and calming. She used it as a way of calming herself down, the very thought that Corey was still alive with her…

The best friends embraced one another for a long while, the silence holding comfort to them for the first time. Corey stroked Sallie’s hair, feeling her small shudders and tiny whimpers against his chest. Corey didn’t cry, but he felt the heartache burning his chest and throat. Eventually, when they broke the hug, Corey gave her a smug smile.

“I’m God, that’s why.” He grinned, trying to lighten the situation, and when Sallie smirked and punched his arm, he knew it worked. “I’m glad you’re here too.” Corey hushed kindly, wiping her tearful cheeks with his palms. “Now stop crying. I’ve got presents for you.”

“Presents?”

“Yeah, Valentines Gifts, you dummy.” Corey piped up proudly. “When I was out cancelling shit, I also had to fix a few things. Which, by the way, you’re mine tonight!”

“T-Tonight? The fuck is happening tonight? I was gonna watch _The Shining_ , finally.”

“Yeah, we can do that. If he lets you.”

“He?”

Corey grabbed Sallie’s hand and pulled her to the sofa, sitting her down.

“Stay there.” And Sallie obeyed, watching Corey hurrying to his bedroom, zipped to the kitchen, and returned. And what Sallie saw made her heart bloom so lovingly. Corey stood there with the colourful bunch of flowers, a terribly wrapped gift-box, and a card. When he saw Sallie’s stunned reaction, Corey smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, I don’t really do the romantic shit, but I _tried!_ ”

He leaned down, holding the vivid bouquet of flowers before her. “These are for you.”

“Corey…” The little woman squeaked, shock holding her voice as she gingerly took the flowers. “F-For me…I…” She looked back at him. “No one’s…ever given me flowers…”

“Huh, another first. I take your virginity in sex _and_ flowers!”

“I’ll fucking-!” Sallie smirked, kicking at Corey’s shin, making the man howl.

“Hey, hey! Calm down!” Corey chuckled, holding the gift box to her. “This is for you too. And this.” He held the card over the box as he handed it to her. “Happy Valentine’s Day, Sal.”

“Oh my god, Corey…”

“I would have wrapped my cock up, but I think you’d kill me.”

Sallie placed the flowers and gift down onto the coffee table, standing up and wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Thank you…” She whispered, turning and pressing her lips onto his cheek.

“You haven’t even opened your present yet!”

“Yeah, but wait!” Sallie grabbed Corey’s arm, pulling him down onto the sofa. “Stay here!”

“The fuck?” Corey cried out, watching Sallie running to the bedroom. And soon, she too returned with a gift box and a card, handing it to Corey.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Corey.” She beamed, watching Corey looking at the present, back at her, to the present, and then again at her.

“I wasn’t…”

“That’s the point, dickhead. It was painfully hard hiding this from you!” Sallie smiled, placing the box onto his lap. She sat down beside him, taking her present and card, flashing Corey a smile. “I want you to open yours first.”

“Nah! You open yours first! Ladies first!”

“No! No, _you_ , I wanna see your reaction.” Sallie glanced at her own present and glared at Corey. “It’s a fucking sex toy, isn’t it?”

Corey piped up a laugh.

“Nah, not this time!” Waving his hand at Sallie, Corey rolled his eyes. “Fine, fine!” Corey grabbed the Valentines Card, opening the envelope and looked at the front of it. And Corey spoke it out:

“ _Valentine, thank you for being my weirdo…_ ” Corey’s voice trailed off, realising that the word _Weirdo_ was crossed out, and above it was written: _Faith._

Corey looked up at Sallie, who was smiling shyly now, her cheeks a soft pink, her eyes shining in the daylight. She looked so beautiful suddenly.

His eyes moved back to the card, opening it and reading the message:

_To my dickhead best friend, Corey Motherfucking Taylor,_

_Thank you for saving me. You mean the world to me, and nothing will ever change that._

_Will you be my Valentine?_

_Lots of love,_

_Sallie XXX_

“Aww, Sal.” Corey sighed, looking back at Sallie and leaning over, kissing her forehead. “Thank you. It’s fucking cute.”

“You’re welcome.” Came the soft reply.

“Open your card!”

Smirking, Sallie decided to anyway, to keep it fair. She opened the envelope and saw the card, howling with laughter the instant she saw it.

“Oh my god!”

“What?”

“You fucking-!” Sallie laughed harder, shaking her head. “I was gonna get this card for you!”

Corey smirked.

“Great minds think alike.” He commented, looking at the card:

**_I can’t be bothered with this Valentine’s stuff. Fancy a fuck?_ **

“So, does this mean you fancy a fuck too?” Corey added, feeling Sallie pushing him back in banter.

“Don’t tempt me.” Sallie teased, flashing Corey a cheeky smile. She opened the card and read the message inside:

_To Sallie,_

_I’m not good at this kind of shit, but know that you’re the best thing that has ever happened to me. My best friend._

_Love Corey X_

“Oh, Corey. Thank you.” Sallie blushed, seeing his handwriting and felt relieved it wasn’t Jack’s creepy love letters. Then she faced him quickly. “Present! Present!”

“You first, this time.”

“Fuck sake!”

But Sallie was eager to see what Corey got her, and so she began to unwrap the small box. The first thing she saw was a box of chocolates.

“I didn’t know what else to get you.” Corey said in defence when Sallie gave him a humorous glare as if to say: _Really?_ “But you’ll like what’s beneath it.” Corey added. Sallie returned her gaze to the box and removed the box of chocolates, and Corey studied her reaction, grinning wildly when her eyes widened, jaw hanging slightly. She looked back at Corey.

“Corey…is this…their new album?”

“Yeah.” Corey nodded.

“Corey, this isn’t cheap!”

“I don’t care.” Corey interrupted, shaking his head. “I wanted to get you this, and I knew you’d appreciate it.” He watched as his best friend lifted out a sealed CD case, the title _KoRn_ on the front, and beneath the seal was the image of a young girl on a swing in the park, the ominous shadow of a stranger just before her as she looked up. _KoRn’s_ first album.

“I…” Sallie stammered for a comment, but instead sighed in happiness. “Thank you,” She leaned towards him and hugged his head, kissing his cheek. She wanted to kiss his lips so badly, but she didn’t feel confident enough in doing so. “I’m…I’m gonna blast this fucking album! The entire fucking city is gonna enjoy listening to it!”

Corey chuckled, enjoying the cute glee that built up in her face. And as always, Corey liked watching her smile, appreciating seeing her looking so happy. “Open yours! Open yours!” Sallie patted Corey’s lap, encouraging him to open his present.

“Sure.” Corey said, tearing the wrapping paper from the box and the first thing he saw was a beanie. He cocked a brow and took it out, the knitted face of Jack Skellington from the _Nightmare Before Christmas_ on it. Playfully, he glared at Sallie. “Is this a hint to your new boyfriend?”

“Shut it!” Sallie cried out in horror, punching his chest again, a little too hard, and even Corey choked in protest at it. “You said you liked the movie. And I saw it. It…just seemed to suit you.” She patted his shoulder again. “But look in! Your shirt is bette-! Shit!”

“So much for a surprise, you moron!” Corey sniggered, reaching in and pulling out the black shirt. It was a custom shirt, and Corey burst out laughing at the punchline on the shirt. “I fucking _love_ this!” Corey announced, turning it around and placed it on his chest, showing the shirt off to Sallie:

_I HAVE THE BIGGEST DICK IN THE BAND_

“Of course, _you’d_ know, Sal.” Corey winked, but Sallie was ready for that kind of comment.

“I didn’t say _where_ the dick was!” Sallie shot back, patting Corey’s head. She took the beanie and placed it on his head. “It _really_ suits you! Grow some hair and you won’t look like a middle-aged man anymore, old Greg!”

Corey grinned boldly, dropping the shirt and grabbed Sallie’s shoulder, his other arm drawn back in a fist.

“The fuck did you say to me, woman?!” He stabbed his fingers into her ribs, and Sallie screamed in delight as he tickled her, her legs kicking. And quickly, the best friends scrambled into a playfight, laughter and joy filled the apartment.


	42. Beautiful Goddess

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AUTHOR'S NOTES:  
> i) The amazing, super-duper beautiful artwork in this piece was done by the glorious @supertracpac on Instagram. It's a Work-in-Progress commission he is currently working on for me! <3 This is the only version I have so far, so when it's finished, I'll replace it. <3  
> https://www.instagram.com/supertracpac/
> 
> ii) It is with bitter regret that, as a Key-Worker, I have returned back to work after being on 'holiday' for two weeks. (Fuckvid-19 ruined my Spain holiday) But I will not let my work get in the way of IOWA. I have too much passion for this project! I just want to give my readers a heads-up, that chapter uploads will be a little slower as I'll be exhausted from the job. But stay sane, we can get through this! <3 Love you guys and thank you for your epic, endless support! <3

Corey had informed Sallie that his Valentine’s gifts were not over. He mentioned to Sallie that he had a date planned for her, which intrigued the little Brit.

_A date…he’s actually taking me on a date?!_

He kept her on edge, only dropping small hints such as the time she needed to be ready, and what perfume to use…not that Sallie had any. She knew Corey was just teasing her and was utterly refusing to even tell her what this mysterious date was. But eventually, she gave up, knowing that she’ll find out soon.

That magical time of 8:30pm came at last. And when Sallie faced Corey, he grinned, knowing what she was about to say.

“Corey! Now can I know?”

“Nope.” Corey smirked, tugging at his black hoodie and opened the apartment door. “To the car.”

And without a comeback, Sallie obeyed, leaving the apartment with Corey.

The car ride was long, much longer than Sallie had anticipated. When they drove out of the city, Sallie realised that her assumption was wrong. There was going to be no movie night, or dinner date…so where was Corey taking her?

It didn’t matter, the car ride was amazing, with her new _KoRn_ CD placed in the CD player and the new album blasted in the car, Sallie smiling so gleefully, the windows rolled down so that the warm, sultry air of the evening came inside. Corey drove down the highway, watching Sallie with the occasional glance and was so proud of having someone like this with him.

She would make a better wife-

His smile dropped vaguely as he focused on driving, knowing that marriage was not on the plate, for him.

The car turned from the tarmac roads and began to follow a dirt path, delving into the woodlands near the city. Sallie had relaxed, reclined back in her seat as she watched the tall trunks of the trees pass by. She kept trying to ask Corey where they were going, but the man simply shrugged.

“I don’t know, he never told me.”

“He?”

Corey said nothing, his eyes on the path. But Sallie decided to wait more. And soon, she took note that they were no longer in civilization. That now, Corey had driven them to a dense woodland area, the leafy canopy above them blocking out the warm, evening sun, which was now settling behind the teeth of the mountains overhead. The road he drove on was one used by many drivers, the dull tyre markings on the floor told Sallie this. And the longer they drove on this dirt path, the more intense Sallie felt. The forest was now dipped in an eternal darkness, black filling in the gaps between trunks of tall trees as nightfall approached. She wasn’t sure of anything anymore.

But, to her relief, she saw a small parking area, a miniature birch fence lined where the parking area ended, and the woods began. There were no cars tonight.

Corey drove the car down and parked it just before the woods. From where Sallie sat, the headlights beamed straight ahead, revealing small strings of fairy-lights marking the forest path, leading the way.

Then the engine stopped.

“Here we are.” Corey announced, leaning back in his seat, staring ahead.

Sallie hesitated.

“Where are we?”

“The woods.” Corey grinned, slowly looking back at Sallie.

“Yeah, I can see that…but _why?_ ”

“This is the date.”

Sallie blinked, glaring at the dense, dark woods ahead. She snapped back at Corey.

“ _Here?!_ ”

“Uh-huh.”

The little Brit was still confused. She stared ahead at the woodlands beyond.

“So…now what?”

“Now, you start walking.”

“Walking?”

“Yeah,” Corey said softly, tucking his hand into his jean pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper, handing it to Sallie. “Take this.” He watched as Sallie slowly reached for it, and he snatched it from her small fingers before she could grab it. “Don’t open it until you start walking ahead.”

“Okay.” And she took the note. “And then…?”

Corey gave her a soft smirk, leaning over to her door, pulling the handle and opened it.

“Go on.”

Sallie stared.

“Wait, what?”

“Go on.” Corey repeated, leaning on the steering wheel and looked at Sallie with a cocky smirk. “This is the date, now go.”

“Date? The fucking woods?!”

“Ssh.” Corey hushed her, trying to calm her outrage down. “It’ll make sense. Just trust me.”

“But Corey, the fucking woods…at night. I don’t fucking know who’s lurking in them-!”

Corey pushed a finger against her lips.

“It’s okay, babe.” He whispered; his voice low. “You won’t be alone, I promise you. Now….” He pointed at the open door, where the chilled air was touching and stroking Sallie’s arm and leg, coaxing her out to the wild. “Go, before I kick you out.” He looked at Sallie, and she watched his eyes, seeing how serious he was about this. There was obviously a reason behind it, but…

“Um…I’d rather be watching _The Shining_ -” Corey’s brows furrowed hard, and she nodded frantically. “Fine, fine!” She gave up, unbuckling her seatbelt and turned to leave the car, stalling, and faced back Corey. She leaned over and took him by surprise when she kissed his lips suddenly, fearing that whatever Corey had planned could go wrong. Corey stared in mute-surprise, watching as Sallie broke the kiss, gave Corey a shy smile and left the car, closing the door behind her and walked ahead, walking down the lit soil path Corey’s car illuminated for her. Corey leaned back in his seat, watching her with a warm smile. How he loved her…

_Hmm…_

Corey leaned down to the small compartment where Sallie’s little legs were and opened it.

Dreadlocks of IOWA rolled out…

Sallie kept walking, and lifted the piece of paper to her face, using the bright, warm headlights as a source of light to read the note. She frowned when she saw the scruffy handwriting, handwriting she recognised…and to her horror, it was the same font as those previous love letters she received from Jack…

_My Eve,_

_Follow the path. I’ll be right behind you, and we shall find Eden together._

_Your Adam_

_XXX_

“What the-?” Sallie whimpered, and abruptly the forest flooded into absolute darkness. The headlights died, leaving Sallie pivoting in the nightfall, panicking. “Corey?!” Sallie screamed, turning back to the car and ran towards it, throwing herself to Corey’s side. “ _Corey!_ ”

Corey was gone.

“What the _fuck_ …what the fuck… _Corey_!” Sallie cried out, frantically looking around the car. Still no sign of Corey. Panic began to fill her veins, her eyes huge with distress.

Suddenly, she was alone.

“C-Corey…” Came the small whimper, looking around the woodlands around her. No body, no human, no movement. Frustrated, she shrugged, shaking her head in annoyance. “The fuck did he go?”

Lifting the note to her eyes again, she barely managed to see the words on it.

“These fucking notes…” She grilled, frowning. “So…did I just…blame someone else-”

A branch fell from the trees, and she heard the scattering of crows flying overhead, spiralling out from their leafy homes. Sallie seized, now feeling more uneasy and longer she stayed still.

_Corey wouldn’t fucking leave me here…there must be a reason…_

She glanced at the note one last time, hoping there was some way she could reverse this treachery.

No…there was not.

“Guess I’ve gotta…follow the path…” She murmured in displeasure, sighing deeply, and eventually, she managed to pull herself from fear’s grip, and carefully she walked down the dirt path, approaching the faint small fairy-lights that lined the footpath. Note in hand, Sallie’s boots tapped onto the forestry floor, small twigs and branches snapping and crunching beneath her boots, seemingly too loud in the deafening silence.

Wide eyed, Sallie strained her ear to hear any source of potential threats. She had to admit, the thrill of the fear was starting to excite her, a slight twinge of apprehension, the same feeling she felt while watching horror movies and running through _Farmageddon_ with _Slipknot_ …it was adrenaline-pumping. But it was that void of the unknown that she wasn’t keen on.

By the time she reached the end of the fairy-lights, she saw another note nailed to the wooden barrier. Taking it, she tore it from the birch fence and looked at it, reading it:

_My Baby-Girl,_

_Our paradise is further ahead. You have a long way to go. Keep going forward, and trust yourself._

_Daddy will be with you._

_XXX_

“Hmm…” Sallie stirred slightly, uncertain how to take these notes now that she realised that she had falsely accused of Jack for these love letters. But if these love letters came from Corey, then why was he so mad when he saw them…unless it was part of an act? But still-!

A crow cawed loudly above her, as if beckoning her to keep going. She glared up ahead, the canopy now a broken blanket of blackness against the dark, brown sky contrasting alongside the shadows of the treetops.

Tucking both notes into her pocket, Sallie continued on, finally walking through the dark, wilderness of the woods alone, with no lights and a vague sense of direction. She was going in blind.

The longer she roamed, the more intense she felt herself becoming, with that gruelling sensation of someone watching her. She glanced back, sceptical, and seeing no such body behind her. She scrutinized the trees, her mind playing games now as the dark illusions took her in.

Her pace quickened, the air becoming colder now.

Her eyes spotted a white note pinned to the trunk of a huge leafless tree, and running towards it, she grabbed the note, now grateful to have any form of communication with something.

_Sallie,_

_There is a rockery just east from here. Be a good girl and walk towards it._

_Your Secret Admirer_

_XXX_

“This is fucking twisted…” Sallie grilled, annoyed of realising the notes came from a closer source, one that she trusted so much. Her fingers began to shake from the chill, her knees trembling.

A shadow shifted, and Sallie snapped around, seeing it move behind a tree.

_Fuck. I swear I saw that._

Like a stunned deer, Sallie stared at the tree in question, tempted to approach it and investigate it. But her senses warned her to back off, to continue the path.

_Maybe it’s Corey-_

_Play the damn game so he doesn’t get angry…_

Reluctantly, Sallie gradually faced away and looked at the note again, seeing an arrow drawn onto the corner, hinting her next destination. She looked down to see a cluster of large rocks further ahead, and she realised that was her next objective.

Promptly, she hurried towards it, her pace quicker now, not wanting to be here any longer. Her nerves were fraying at this point, feeling all of her senses heightened and intensified into full gear, her eyes finally adjusting to the everlasting darkness. Sallie hadn’t been here for many years, but she vaguely recalled where she was going, and so she found herself in the rockery garden. Large, bulking rocks placed at random, almost posing like a museum of different rocks formed under different weather conditions. Some were tall and wide, like monoliths, while others were boulders in comparison.

Sallie remembered the monolith rock, and to her surprise, she spotted a note there. She ran towards it and snatched it, opening it.

Her heart stopped.

**_RUN_ **

Sallie emitted a tiny squeak, her horror blinding her for a blunt second, before she registered the world around her-

The sound of running feet were approaching her from behind, ascending towards her frighteningly fast through the dried leaves.

Sallie spun around, and let out a scream of terror to see a figure rushing towards her, ropes swinging from its head-

But Sallie didn’t think after that. Instincts lurched her into action and she ran, hollering at the top of her voice as loud as she could, her feet running as soon as they hit the ground, whimpering as she scurried around the rocks, diving between a couple and looking back, seeing the figure still close behind her, his hands raking through the gap between them, trying to grab her. She could hear heavy breathing, the desperate gasps of a rapist-!

“ _FUCK!_ ” Sallie shrieked again, her body felt hot with adrenaline, her mind switching into primal reflexes. She lunged back to the monolith, astounded that her jump reached for the top of the rock, and desperately, she scrambled up, pushing her boots onto the flat surface of the monolith and pulled herself up onto higher ground. Glaring over her shoulder-

No one.

Gasping for air, her huge eyes looked around the area anxiously, scanning for the position of this stalker. But she couldn’t figure out where he was. She couldn’t hear him either, her heartbeat was too loud in her skull to allow her to listen, her chest almost imploding with the dangerously hard heartbeats. Deliberately squatting down, perched on top of the rock like a gargoyle, Sallie took this moment to congratulate herself for managing to free-fall herself up the rock, having never anticipated her ability in doing so. It was quite an achievement.

“C-Corey…?” Sallie meekly whimpered, more of a cry for help instead of guessing the identity of her pursuer.

No answer. As predicted.

Sallie remained still, her eyes fixated in her surroundings like a sailor in a crow’s nest, seeing any threat nearby.

_Behind you._

A low horrible sensation reached in Sallie’s gut, and without thinking she looked back to see the pursuer clawing his way behind Sallie silently, ready to grab her sneakily. Sallie squealed again in alarm, leaping off the rock without thinking and landed awkwardly, her ankles seizing beneath the hasty pound of weight and she toppled, grunting in pain. But when she saw the chaser climbing back down to claim his prize, Sallie whined in angst, scrabbling off the dirt and ran away, her ankles sparking in hot pain, but she had to press on.

The chaser ran after her, a repulsive perverted laugh reached her from behind, disgusting her with his warped enjoyment in this.

And what horrified Sallie more was that her chaser was calling her out now, words that she had heard before:

**“ _Sallie! C’mere babe!_ ”**

“No!” Sallie cried, rushing between the trunks of the trees, trying to frantically lose her chaser.

**“ _Even if you run, I will find you!_ ”**

“Fuck off, _please_!”

**“ _I decided I want you, now I know…I need!_ ”**

Sallie tripped on a dip on the earth, rolling onto the floor and managed to catch herself, sitting up, and see the chaser running after her. Teeth of a grinning mouth glistened. But to her dread, as she stood up, a hand grabbed onto her shirt and yanked, his nails raking down her back and she let out a squeal of trepidation. A heavy body fell onto her, and all of a sudden her hunter had her on the floor.

Tears blurred her eyes, and as her predator looked down at her, she grabbed his head and struck a punch across it blindly, knocking the man off her.

**“ _You will be mine!_ ”**

Blood spat at her face.

Sallie kicked herself out from beneath the man, and fled from the cringing predator, who promptly picked himself up and followed Sallie, running endlessly, laughing hysterically, whimpers and desperate snarls through clenched teeth.

She recognised these noises…noises of an abused, traumatized, manically insane man…

_Heartache and a pair of Scissors…_

Now Sallie was running blindly, her tears burning her sight, arms swinging hard as she tried to run as fast as she could. Her sore ankles were gradually easing-

She noticed a distinct source of light in the circular clearing, and knowing she was still under target, she turned towards it, whining, feeling dizzy with panic. And soon, she noticed through the black trunks of the trees that there was a wooden cabin bathed under a single spotlight.

_Help! Help!_

Sallie ran towards the front door, leaping over the small steps and banged her fists on the door.

“Please! Please, let me in! Let me in!”

As she beat her fist against the door, she looked over her shoulder, seeing a figure coming to the fringe of the forest, honing onto her.

**“ _Keep in mind, I watch you! You will fucking be mine!_ ” **

Sallie’s pupils dinted, the hysterical giggle lacing her hunter’s taunt, and decided to invite herself in. In sheer panic, she twisted the door handle and the door opened, running inside and slamming it shut behind her, turning the lock-

There was no key.

_Fuck!_

And what was even worse, no one was here. It was a small cabin, surprisingly warm with a lit fire. Before her was a small room, a tiny bathroom, but what took her by surprise was the large double bed before her…and…

_Holy fuck..._

Easing slightly, Sallie figured out what was happening. There was another note on the bed, presenting itself for her, and behind it was another mask.

Sallie studied it, seeing that it looked like an older version of the IOWA mask, with crooked stitches and its texture was not of latex, but instead it was a full head mask of leather, all corruptly sewed up together. The eye and mouth holes looked more distressed, with black tar-light paint staining it, like endless crying. And the dreadlocks were much thinner, battered and looked more gross…

When Sallie saw this, she gradually left the door, approaching the bed, looking at the distressed mask and the note. Snatching the note, she opened it, praying it would give her some answers:

_To my love, Sallie,_

_Congrats. You found Eden._

_Happy Valentine’s Day. You will be mine._

_IOWA_

_XXX_

At that point now, the door swung open, and Sallie spun around, seeing the familiar body of IOWA standing by the door, his dreadlocks looking incredibly distraught from the running. Blood stained the corner of his mouth, and he was clad in his black jumpsuit.

Sallie’s jaw hung slightly.

“Shit…” Then it finally clicked, the adrenaline no longer blinding common sense. “Corey…” The masked man took a long, frustrated sigh, and Sallie quickly corrected herself. “IOWA…” Sallie held the note, glancing at it and back at him. “I…didn’t mean to hit you…I was scared…”

“That’s the point, my little Eve.” IOWA grinned, his dirty teeth now stained with faint blood. He slammed the cabin door behind him, and tucked his hands into his pocket, pulling out a key and turned, locking the door. Surprisingly, Sallie relaxed. She was relieved she wasn’t alone, and that she wasn’t being chased by some, crazed rapist. But it was certainly the fright of her fucking life.

“Fucking hell, IOWA, you fucking terrified me.”

“But you’re wet.” IOWA pointed out, taking a few steps towards Sallie and pulled her towards him, his hand immediately pulling the hem of her jeans and shoved a hand down the front of them, his dirtied finger brushing past her pussy lips. Sallie winced at the sudden invasion, feeling another flush of arousal coming to her. Just as predicted, she was sodden wet, aroused and ready to mate. Sallie watched IOWA grin smugly at this. “Mmm, yes.” He purred, pulling his hand out, holding his lewdly wet fingers between them, and he pushed them into his lips, tasting her. “Sweet and creamy…”

Sallie said nothing, her eyes glancing at his hand to his face as he suckled onto them, too engross in the taste.

“Um…”

IOWA seemed to realise where he was, and he looked back at Sallie. Grabbing her hands, he pulled her towards the bed with him, and he pointed at the mask.

“That’s my gift to you, babe.” He groaned.

“T-The mask?”

“Yes.” IOWA leaned down and snatched it from the bed, putting his hand inside of it and presented it to Sallie, like a seller trying to convince a new client of what product he was selling. His fingers weaved through the dreadlocks. “Isn’t it beautiful?”

“It sure is…” Sallie murmured, watching IOWA stroke his mirror-image.

“It’s my first…” He whispered softly. “My Self-Titled mask.”

“Self-Titled?”

“Yes. This is the mask I posed in when we took our photo for the first album.”

“First album..?” Sallie repeated, her eyes widening, and she faced IOWA quickly. “W-Wait?! You have an album now?”

“Not yet, but soon my little sweetheart,” IOWA cooed lovingly, tapping a finger onto her nose. “Now, I’m giving this to you.” He held the mask at her.

“B-But why? It’s special to you.”

“Exactly.” IOWA stated a little firmly. “ _You’re_ special to me.” A dangerous grin merged in the darkness beneath his mask. “This cabin, this _peace_ , in the middle of nowhere where no one can find us or bother us… _this_ ,” IOWA held the Self-Titled mask before her, the dreadlocks swaying constantly, disgusting ropes of dead hair. Sallie realised that those dreadlocks were Corey’s…the ones he chopped off…

Something about that horrified her. But when IOWA leaned close to her, she forced herself to look at his eyes, dark blue eyes fixated onto her. IOWA loved how pale her flesh was. “This is my Valentines Gift to you, my love.” Raising his other hand to her cheek, IOWA stroked it gently, caressing its plumpness and wanting to eat it up. “Just you, and me.” Gradually, IOWA leaned down, pressing his cold, wet lips onto Sallie’s neck, dragging bits of his blood onto her flesh, essence of himself seeping through her pores, like a virus ready to claim her. Sallie closed her eyes, feeling the kiss, and couldn’t help but let out a soft, lewd moan. “The chase, the love letters… _all me_ …” IOWA groaned between kisses, his hand sliding from her cheek and onto the back of her neck. He kissed her a few more times before pulling away. “We sleep here tonight.”

“I… _actually_ kinda like this…” Sallie admitted, her eyes looking around the cabin. There was a small bookcase, a tiny TV on a stand before the bed, and the small room she realised was a bathroom. It was a simple cabin, but it was cosy with its warm, wooden features, and rustic carpet and curtains. “It’s beautiful, IOWA.”

“I’m glad you see it my way.” The masked man murmured. “Now,” He held the mask to Sallie. “Hold this for me, babe.”

Obeying IOWA, Sallie grabbed it, watching him move to the other side of the bed. “Okay, you’re gonna have to do this for me now. Call it…your gift to me, as I know you didn’t by me any gifts today,”

“But I did…” Sallie trailed off.

_Oh, wait…he meant IOWA…fuck, I didn’t…_

“I’m…I’m sorry, sweetheart.” Sallie mewed sadly, and IOWA held a hand up.

“It’s okay! IOWA has this covered. He _knew_ you’d be too busy with that…fucking Corey Taylor…”

That comment made Sallie slightly uneasy. She was certain that it was Corey beneath that mask, but she felt as if he was taking this persona so seriously that sometimes she forgets that.

IOWA stood up and was holding something that even Sallie wasn’t expecting.

It was a black lingerie set, panties and a bra with matching suspenders and stocking. Lacey and silken, Sallie recognised it from one of the mannequins back at work.

“Whoa…I-”

IOWA was suddenly in front of her, shockingly quick.

“You wear this. For me.” He begged adoringly, cupping her small hands in his palms and pulled them against his chest. “I promise I won’t look when you get dressed in it.”

“I…uh…now?”

“Yes! Now, please!” IOWA insisted, clapping his hands to hype up the urgency in his demand. “Quickly, before I lose my mind!”

“Umm, y-yeah, sure!” Sallie shuddered, glancing at the bathroom. Placing the mask back onto the bed, she hurried to the bathroom and obeyed her masked admirer. Even when she closed the door behind her, she could feel IOWA eagerly sneaking towards the door, pressing the side of his face against the door, and listened. His breath deep and intense, brushing and whispering through the wooden door. He was admiring every movement she made, every little shred of life she produced, IOWA was drinking it up.

Sallie felt him pressing his body against the door, trying to phase through it, all too enthusiastic in seeing his little sweetheart.

Eventually, Sallie began to undress, removing her shirt and gazed down at the lingerie. She hasn’t worn one of these before. The bra and panties were simple enough, but stockings and suspenders she had never used before.

_It can’t be that difficult…_

Wanting to impress her elusive admirer, Sallie removed all of her clothes, standing naked as she observed herself in the small mirror above the polished sink. She didn’t have the best body; she hated every single fibre of it. She didn’t understand how someone like Corey…and IOWA, could even be remotely attracted to her.

A desperate whine seeped through the door, the sound of an impatient IOWA. And on that cue, Sallie dressed quickly, attaching her bra together and pulled up the panties. She was pleasantly surprised the bra size was exact, and her panties felt very comfortable.

But the suspenders…and stockings…

She didn’t understand it. The suspenders were worse than she realised, having accidently tangle them together and was confused which way they went.

When she heard another anxious whimper, she turned to the door.

“Uh…” She had to be careful. “IOWA?”

“Yes, my love?”

“I’m…confused…I don’t understand how these suspender-thingys work. I’ve never worn them before.” A pause. “Could you…help me please?”

“Of course.” Came the soft reply, sounding touched by the meek cry for help. “My poor baby.”

Sallie watched the door handle twist, and when IOWA came in, there was a strange coldness brought into the bathroom. He looked down, silhouetted against the faint light, studying his little prey. She looked so precious there, so fragile and adorable. She held the suspenders and stockings against her chest, as if doing so would hide her indecency away from his eyes. But it didn’t really matter. Besides, IOWA had already seen it all. It was just cute how a pathetic little attempt of hiding herself from _him_ was even committed. But IOWA forgave her quickly.

“I…I don’t understand this-”

IOWA took two steps towards her and grabbed her skull, pulling her face to his chest and he tilted it back, making her look up at him. IOWA’s lips glistened beneath his mask as he smiled, placing a dirty finger over her plump lips.

“Ssh. It’s okay, my precious little fairy. I’ll help you.” He stared down at her, his hands holding her cheeks and he watched at her passionately, doting the sight of this woman. Her appearance always so soothing to him, like an aphrodisiac for his exhausted eyes. And he had fallen even more deep for this woman when she stared back at him with equal intention, captivated, contemplating about him…

“IOWA, your pupils are huge…” Sallie pointed out, noticing how the majority of IOWA’s eyes were black pitched holes. They seemed unnaturally large. But IOWA did not flinch, nor did he defend himself aggressively. Instead, he whispered:

“My pupils expand when I see something I like _very,_ very much…” IOWA said slowly, his fingers carefully brushing Sallie’s hair behind her ear. His breath hot.

_That seemed sweet, but-_

IOWA backed away suddenly, taking the stockings and suspenders in his hands. Sallie watched him carefully get onto his knees before her.

Delicately, he grabbed her foot, pinching his fingers gently at her little toes and lifted it, holding it up. Then, soothingly, he began to fit the stocking onto her foot, carefully dressing her as if she was a priceless mannequin. The stocking rolled up her leg and thigh lithely beneath his moving palms. Once one stocking was on, Sallie watched IOWA, poised on one leg as IOWA cradled her leg as if it was a graceful child of the world, his arm cusping beneath it, the other shielding her shin, his aching fingers tracing alone the silken seam of the stocking. He softly pulled her leg towards him, holding it against his face, kissing it slowly.

Then, IOWA lifted her foot, letting his fingers and lips worship this one of many limbs that was part of this remarkable creation, like a scientist revering his resurrected human. He kissed her leg slowly, his hand running up beneath her leg, cupping her milky thighs, fingers pushing in deeply, feeling how alive she was, feeling her beautiful blood running inside.

His precious Brit watched him with tranquil eyes, fascinated in his actions, feeling every single warm kiss puckering at her flesh, kissing every inch of her body, making her feel so much worth.

IOWA pulled her toes to his lips again, a low groan escaping his throat, his caressing kiss soothing against her big toe, tucked and teasingly hidden beneath the sensual allures of the stockings. When he finished this, he gently placed her foot down and repeated the same process with her other leg, delicately running the stocking up her leg, the darken silken stocking seductively hugging onto her curvy thigh, the lace hemming at the top of the stocking clinging onto her flesh.

Sallie continued to watch IOWA in stunned silence, feeling the adoration in every kiss, how his hands brushed against her leg, fingers dragging soothingly, palms sweating with eagerness. He seemed so obsessive yet endearingly so. His actions made her feel like he was worshipping a Goddess, and she was that Goddess. Even when he placed her other foot down, he shuffled on his knees like a mortal man, wrapping his arms around her hips and pulled her against his face, hugging her small body against his mask, and she felt him inhaling her scent there.

He had forgotten about the suspenders and was now entirely focused on her, like an infatuation being fed.

His cherished, wonderful creature watched him with such integrity, such fascination. How much she trusted him. How much she seemed to be willing to walk through the darkness of his twisted, inner personality. But perhaps that was what IOWA adored about her. She accepted him for who he was.

She never dated anyone. And for a long time, IOWA pondered how could such a magnificent creature not be wanted by others. But then he realised something, in the deepest grief and utter harmony, that it was not because she was unwanted.

But it was because others could not compromise the beauty of who she was. They didn’t understand it, so they feared her. And rejected her.

But IOWA knew. IOWA appreciated her. She was profound beauty and grace, an angel that had fallen from the split heavens and was cast aside. And only IOWA understood her.

It was as if she was made for him, and he was made for her.

Sallie listened carefully, and she felt a sob hitching IOWA’s chest. He choked softly, and she shifted in his arms, looking down from where she stood.

“IOWA?”

IOWA gradually looked up at the call of his name, and behind the gaping eyeholes of the mask, Sallie saw his eyes glossy and blood-shot, tears straining their crystal-clearness, and now he was sobbing tenderly. That struck panic in the little Brit. “Sweetie!” Sallie piped up, squatting down so that she was at his level, hands stroking his face, caressing his latex mask. “IOWA, what’s the matter?”

IOWA sniffed, shutting his eyes as he slightly tilted his head back. She could see his black lips quivering in the void, trying to conquer this surge of emotion. And when he opened his mouth, he lost his words and choked on emotions, sniffing hard. His bride’s hands stroked his face, comfortingly, and he was relieved that she didn’t run away into the mist or vanished like a little forest fairy.

“You’re…so beautiful…” IOWA cried eventually, his voice trembling and unstable, words between intense gasps. “You’re so beautiful…”


	43. Masked Lovers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains:  
> \+ Vague sex scenes  
> \+ Just strange shit

Sallie didn’t know what to say.

All she could do was stare down at the man crumbling before her. She knew it was simply a welling of raw emotions, but her vocabulary had failed her to even come up with a reply to it.

His striking eyes stared back at her intensely, glistening with tears that he could not hold back.

“I…” Sallie said dumbly, having no real comment prepared for this. Figuring it was best to say nothing, she smiled lovingly, her palm holding IOWA’s cheek, her thumb stroking him. He could feel the gentle caress beneath the mask.

IOWA watched her adoringly, slowly closing his eyes and placing his cheek onto her stomach, feeling her hand tracing up his skull and stroking him.

“I’m…so lucky…to have you…” IOWA choked between pants, his arms hugging her waist harder, pulling her closer. Slowly, he turned his face and began to kiss her stomach, black-painted lips puckered, subtle dots of affection on her flesh. After a few kisses, he paused: “My babies would be here…” He shut his eyes, and Sallie felt an intense rile of disgust surprising her from that comment. It intensified when IOWA stuck his tongue out, thick, and ran it up her stomach. And when she heard IOWA snarl lowly, she stiffened in mounting anxiety. “But then they would take you away from me…and we can’t have that…”

“I don’t…want babies…” Sallie shook her head. “I can’t-”

IOWA stood up suddenly, his eyes huge and severe, inching closer and closer to her face. There was a strange sway to his body language.

“It’s okay, babe. It’s okay…w-we…” He reached down, gently cusping her hands in his. “We can-can make our own…”

“No, I don’t want babies.” Sallie was getting a little frightened by this, but thankfully, IOWA saw it. He kissed her lips suddenly.

“We don’t have to have babies, okay? Okay! That’s fine! I’m okay with it.” Nodding frantically, IOWA pulled Sallie out of the bathroom with him, stepping backwards, bringing her back towards the bed. He made her sit on the edge of the bed, and he paused, studying her for a long time. He regarded her with such an admiration, taking a step back and cocked his head from side to side. Sallie felt like she was being scrutinised by a professional photographer.

Then, he spoke soothingly slow:

“Lie down for me, babe.” He purred, a dangerous grin pulling at his lips as she obeyed him, like a good little kitten. He loved the way she moved, everything about her was just genuinely adorable. He watched her lift her legs up, one by one, turning herself around and settled onto the bed. He didn’t notice the uncertain gaze she was giving him until he stepped towards her, looking down at her face. And he gave her a warm smile, reaching out for her face and touching it, putting the tips of his middle and index finger on her forehead, and gradually dragged them down, tracing precise lines over her silky face. “So magnificent... So precious and divine…” He whispered, every single word serious. It wasn’t a cute flirt, or a friendly compliment. It was a serious state of fact, and he stood by those words like a religious man with the bible. His words were law, and anyone who denied them shall suffer.

That made Sallie stir slightly.

“J-Just stay still,” IOWA commanded in a small voice, grabbing his zipper of his jumpsuit and began to pull it down, revealing his naked body beneath it. Sallie gawked mutely, watching IOWA unzip his jumpsuit all the way down, his hand dipping beneath the bottom of the opening and grabbed onto his cock beneath it. A bulge shifted and moved; his hand pressed against the jumpsuit as he began to play with himself. “I could just look at you…all day. Forever…” IOWA whispered, dreadlocks shifted gently. He took a deep breath suddenly, slowly calming his raging heart down. His hand beneath the jumpsuit was squeezing and bumping against the fabric.

“Stay still…?” Sallie replied meekly, not feeling too comfortable with this now. This felt too unnatural. So, trying to feel like a normal couple about to consummate their love for one another, she moved, lying onto her side. A female about to perform her mating dance to her feral lover. “Would it be better if I did this?”

IOWA tilted his head at her, a small snarl cocked his upper lip in displeasure, and Sallie swore she heard him growl slightly. But she knew what to do. IOWA evidently didn’t understand what she was doing, so she continued, pulling one leg so that it was bend, her body poised like a model from a raunchy magazine. And then she heard a sickening chuckle, a positive reaction, and it made her smile. “You like this?”

“Yes babe…” IOWA grunted, his other hand slipping down inside of his jumpsuit, and now he was grasping at his cock and balls at the sight of her, his legs spread apart and slightly bent. He was panting a little more excessively now, and Sallie smiled sweetly in victory.

She tried to think what women usually do to look sexy, and a few ideas cropped up. She placed a hand on her thigh, and traces it up silkily, emphasising the softness beneath her palm, and she heard IOWA whine. It was actually cute to hear an antagonistic man like IOWA simply whimper for her. She felt this strange surge of confidence and power.

“Does IOWA like this?” Sallie whispered, her tone becoming dirty the more confident she felt. IOWA nodded, biting his lower lip hard as he gasped for air. He saw her nails slightly pushed into her skin, bending the flesh with small dimples, an inkling of a threat of cutting her flesh, and IOWA whimpered, almost sorrowfully.

“P-Please don’t…hurt yourself like that.” He groaned, straightening his back as his hands moved beneath his jumpsuit. “Don’t break yourself. You’re too gorgeous. Too delicate. Be careful.”

He loved how his Eve was looking at him with such filth in her eyes, such want. He never felt this sort of attraction to anyone before, obsessively wanting every single fibre of her being under his name.

Sallie didn’t understand. She wasn’t hurting herself at all. But she dismissed it, smirking lewdly now, feeling more into this.

Her hand reached towards her silken-clad pussy, pushing a finger into the swollen mould, emphasising the thick readiness. She was getting wet, and soon the silk will darken from the dampness.

“IOWA, I want you inside me again.” Sallie pleaded honestly, yearning for that phenomenon of IOWA fucking her senselessly again. Her body recalled the sensation, and it desperately begged for it. “I wanna see your cock.”

That command did something to IOWA. With an animalistic snarl, IOWA obeyed, pulling his cock out from beneath the jumpsuit, and Sallie felt a thrill jolting in her when she saw it. The glistening, throbbing head of his cock, precum beaded the tip, his shaft thick and raw with a strong vein protruding from it. He had been hard for a while, and he was ready for a release, his body ready for this. Sallie saw his swollen balls press against the jumpsuit, and her thighs clenched, closing together and he saw them physically shake with a hard squeeze.

IOWA’s chest heaved at the sight of his desperate little angel. She was ready to mate, and the animal in him wanted to rag her, to force her open and ram his cock into that desperate moist hotness. But, by a miracle, he held back, wanting this to be special for them both. They were in their Eden, and Adam was about to fuck his Eve. There was no snake, no God, no trees…just him and his little wife in paradise…

“You want this?” IOWA groaned huskily, and seeing Sallie nodding eagerly, he finally walked towards her, his hips perfect height for her head. When his cock inched towards Sallie’s face, she smelt that raw masculine musk and was instantly attracted, like a spell, she was so willing to do anything with him.

An idea came to Sallie. Something they had not done before.

She tenderly reached for his hand, and IOWA watched wordlessly as she grabbed his wrist and directed it towards her thighs, which had opened for him, and pressed his palm onto her pussy, his fingers curved under her. A deep grunt rippled from the mask, knowing what she wanted, and he was surprised to see her grabbing his cock, pulling it towards her, directing the head to her lips.

Sallie kissed the hot head, and it twitched at the touch, making IOWA grumble lewdly.

“Fuck me with your fingers, please…” Sallie requested, and wrapped her lips around the tip of his cock, making sure he realised that she wasn’t going to leave him with nothing. That she too will pleasure him and reward him for his hard work.

The instant her perfect lips touched his cock, IOWA shook, his head turned suddenly away as he winced. Not in pain, but the shock in how stunning this felt. He didn’t know if Sallie was just some magical creature, or if it was because she was so uncorrupted, so untainted, that everything she did with her still, somewhat-virgin actions, everything she did was just more pleasuring than anything he felt.

Chemical and drugs fizzed in his skull, amplifying every emotion and strengthening the hormones that ran through his body. Everything felt ten times more exhilarating.

“Babe…I love you.” IOWA grunted under his breath, and just as Sallie was about to pull away to question, his other hand grabbed her skull, his fingers cruelly grasping at her hair and thrusted his cock inside of her mouth, giving no warning, just desperately proceeding to fuck her mouth, feeling her teeth grazing above and beneath his shaft. He found it appetising how her eyes widened unexpectedly, tears of shock burst up onto her lashes when he felt his cock ram at the back of her throat, and almost too quickly, her hands grabbed his hips and pushed him away and out of her, choking on saliva and gagged against the reflexes of her throat.

“D-Don’t do that!” Sallie cried out in her hand, coughing and recoiling on the bed, trying to breathe. “T-That wasn’t funny!” She was genuinely angry about it, glaring at IOWA with furious, beautiful eyes.

Such adorable, stormy eyes…

IOWA stood beside her with little emotion to the distress she showed, his eyes holding no remorse.

**_Rape her mouth._ **

IOWA took a step but decided better.

He didn’t like blowjobs, he decided. It made his little Eve upset.

As she tried to clear her throat, IOWA turned to her legs, grabbing both ankles and yanking them towards her, shocking his little bride as he turned her around, so that she was lying over the bed horizontally, her creamy-white legs hanging off the edge. Forcing them up in the air, IOWA fastened her legs at both sides of his hips and pushed his body down aggressively on her between her legs, his eyes dark with dangerous intent.

He saw Sallie writhe beneath him when he felt his raw, throbbing cock push against her pussy and clit, making her squirm in want for him. It was as if she was in season, ready to be bred. Any form of contact he gave her, she did this adorable, small whine and gasp, her eyes in anticipation.

“I want to fill you with my seed.” He snarled dryly, both hands grabbing the sides of her head and he made her look up at him, and him only. He was fully aware that she was wearing lingerie, her panties the only pitiful force that stopped him from penetrating his mate, but he didn’t mind it.

Sallie watched IOWA intently, seeing him swallow a lump in his throat, his Adam’s apple moving. IOWA pressed his face onto her, kissing her roughly, his breathing staggering and snarling as his lips made love with hers, his fingers pressing hard into her scalp, fingers entwined with her hair. And just as he did this, his hips began to thrust, brushing his cock over her erect clit through the now-soaked panties. He thrusted softly at first, teasing his little bride with his cock, compelling her in what he was about to do to her very, _very_ soon.

But then IOWA pulled his hips back, much further back now, and with a determined thrust of his hips, he fucked Sallie slightly. Sallie yelped in shock to feel his cock enter inside of her, realising that IOWA had just forced his cock through her panties, and was now fucking her with it. Before Sallie could register the entire situation, IOWA was now fucking her like this, pushing her panties inside of her pussy, his hot breath grunting ferally above her. “Does it…does it feel good, babe?” He asked, looking down at her with eagerness of her reaction.

“It feels weird!” Came the blurted shock, her pink lips shining beneath IOWA. To her dismay, IOWA growled, more incensed now, and he pulled himself away from her.

“You’re _never_ fucking happy!”

All too quickly, Sallie pulled away from him, her face painted with heartache, and IOWA panicked quickly again, shifting between guilt and fury like a switchboard, and it was starting to become intimidating now, too _uncomfortable._

“N-No! No, no!” IOWA cried out in raw panic, approaching her. “I didn’t mean to-!” But his chest stung when he watched Sallie scramble to the other side of the bed, avoiding him now.

“What is going on?!” Sallie snapped suddenly, the tears in her eyes from before remained there, her eyes looking so delicate and broken in the dim light. “You’re acting so fucking weird and it’s fucking scaring me.”

“I didn’t mean to scare you, babe-”

“Corey, what’s happening with you? I don’t-don’t know what it is, but you’ve just seemed…so odd and I…” Sallie’s words jangled in her flurry of emotion, losing the concrete of her exclamation and was now stumbling. “I don’t know if this is an act or if you’re-”

“I’m not Corey.” IOWA grilled, interrupting her.

“You’re Corey _beneath_ that mask.” Sallie protested. “The mask is a persona, it’s _not_ you!” Her eyes casted to the Self-Titled mask that was on the edge of the bed, and glancing at her masked friend, she snatched it and held it before him. “If I wore this mask, who am I?”

IOWA flashed a cocky grin. He knew this answer.

“Why, you’re my little angel. My babe. My sweetheart, my Eve.”

“But I’m still Sallie underneath it!” Sallie explained.

“Put it on.” IOWA said, his voice dropping to a dangerous, low tone. “Put it on and tell me how _you_ feel. If _you_ feel like Sallie…”

Sallie glared at IOWA, conflicted. But she didn’t want to deny his request because it would only make his point be proven correct. Besides, wearing a mask wasn’t a big deal. She knew it was just a piece of clothing.

_Remember when you wore IOWA for the first and only time-_

_Shut it._

Glaring, Sallie opened the mask up, and she saw IOWA grab his cock readily as she pulled the Self-Titled mask over her face. It was a snug fit, the leather of the mask pulled at her hair a little too painfully, but with a bit of force, she put the mask on. It felt much lighter compared to IOWA, the dreadlocks seemingly airy in weight. Though she could smell Corey’s hair suddenly. Adjusting the mask slightly to make it fit better, she finally presented herself, waving her arms as if to say: _There, happy?_

“So? What the fuck am I to you?”

She glared through the darkened eyeholes to IOWA, the raw stench of leather assaulting her nose, feeling its rubbery texture clinging onto her hot cheeks. But through her mask, she saw her own masked-friend staring back at her, his jaw slightly hanging open in mute-shock. Mildly frustrated with the lack of reaction, she waved her arms again, presenting herself like a peacock. “Well?!”

And at that point, IOWA was walking around the bed, his eyes never leaving her, staring at her with an unspoken fascination. The mask was a _perfect_ fit for her, it hugged around her pretty heart-shaped face, her beautiful, wide eyes peering through the eyeholes so submissively, her plump lips pursed angrily. Still adorn in that stunning black and red lingerie, her stockings glossy in the light.

She wasn’t just Sallie, wasn’t just his Eve.

She was the holy Goddess he had been fantasizing since he was created. IOWA was looking at his mirror image, at his replica, his mating-pair. He was looking at himself, someone _just_ like him.

And when he was standing before her, he said nothing, loss for words.

Instead, he snatched at her skull and kissed her aggressively, forcing her against the wall and kissed her with a desperate ferocity that he had never felt before.

And this too seemed to have pulled Sallie back inside with him. Her temper simmered and drowned beneath the riles of lust that concaved inside of her, and IOWA groaned assertively when he felt her holding onto him and kissed him back disgustingly with equal force.

“God, I love you!” IOWA gasped between desperate kisses, their lips smacking lewdly, pressing his mask against hers, flesh and latex and leather and hair merging and rubbing together. “I love you, baby. Let me have you.”

_Does he love you, or is he just addicted to sex?_

“D-Do you?” Sallie whimpered between kisses, wanting an answer now. “Do you really love me?”

“Yes, yes. I love _all_ of you.” IOWA whined thickly, his arms quickly snatching her up like a little pet and lifted her up, practically throwing her onto the bed behind him. Both on their sides, IOWA quickly got on top of her, making sure she didn’t escape him. “I want all of you. I want _all_ of you!”

Feverishly now, IOWA was on the verge of losing himself, and threw both of Sallie’s legs to one side, twisting her legs and hips. He saw her plump, ready pussy, puckering between her thighs.

**_I wanna burrow in it!_ **

“I mean-!” Sallie tried to protest, but IOWA was now too intense in mating his Eve, grabbing her panties and pulling them off her legs promptly.

“ _Love me!_ ” IOWA was now screaming, his hands clumsy and aggressive, snatching at his cock and bent down over her hip, pushing his tip at her drenched warmth and the moment he felt it, he snatched at her hips and pulled her onto him, feeling her warm pussy clinging onto his cock, tensing in surprise at his invasion, and his little bride squeaked, her legs slightly opening up to ease the shock of the position as he yanked her onto his kneeling thighs. Holding her hips onto his cock, he held onto her and hugged her, her warmth making him feel so much life, so alive. Becoming one with his lover. IOWA held onto Sallie for a long time, letting his cock push further inside of her pussy, and leaving it stuffed in there.

Sallie swore she felt it brushing against her stomach. Feeling IOWA holding onto her, she tried to readjust herself, lifting her leg around IOWA’s head so that her legs were wrapped around his waist, and she pulled herself up into an embrace with him, hugging him as she felt his cock throb inside of her, feeling complete by this.

IOWA whined when Sallie hug onto him, feeling her affection towards him, feeling her acceptance and he held her onto his thighs, hugging her on the bed like this. The masked lovers remained still for a brief moment, taking the moment to embrace the fact how complete both felt. It was an unusual display of love, but something so inhumanly level with their own consciousness and nature. Something about this felt right between them.

And when the moment was gone, Sallie saw IOWA’s eyes drenched in arousal, his intentions so ready now. Making her lie back on the bed, to which she instinctively held herself up with her elbows, IOWA stood up on his knees and groped her ass, holding her up to his hips, and with wet, sweating claps, he began to thrust in her frantically, saliva bleeding over his lips, jaw tightened, teeth gritted, his cock easily gliding inside of her and pushing back, stabbing her insides with his erection.

His little bride cried out for him, his name lifting all around them in a harmonic chime of worship. He fucking loved it when she called out his name like this, how she seemed to be begging for his presence to make her feel good, announcing his name. He gawked at her soft breasts rolling beneath their silken bra, watching and waiting for them to burst out from their cups at his strong thrusts.

Sallie howled for him more, looking back at IOWA, and through her mask she smiled.

The very sight of raw happiness touched IOWA, making him seize his thrusting. But Sallie didn’t feel any fear in his abrupt halt. She knew he was just intrigued with her actions.

Slowly, he lowered himself down, pressing the forehead of his mask against hers.

“I love you,” IOWA whispered, every syllable genuine and intense.

“I love you too, Corey.” Sallie managed to reply, reflecting her feelings at last.

But she felt cold when she looked up at IOWA, and suddenly IOWA looked enraged by her statement. He felt her stiffen, a strange cold breeze rolling between them, and just as IOWA opened his mouth-

A terrifying _boom!_ erupted from the door, and Sallie instinctively snatched up the bedding beneath her and covered herself.

Both IOWA and Sallie turned to the door, hearing it being booted down, and the young, masked lovers seized when they saw the black uniform of the Des Moines police force barging in, several guns pointing at the lovers on the bed. IOWA hunched himself over Sallie protectively, knowing that the police uniforms meant danger, and he bellowed at them, a grotesque roar of despair striking through the night…


	44. Hollow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains:  
> \+ The mention of drugs (Cocaine)

Her skin felt cold and clammy. Her body completely stiff and unsatisfied, frustration bleeding through her veins where lust once was, crystallizing like a terrible chemical and plaguing her body with this frigid, dreadful fury.

Sallie had never been inside of the Police Department in Des Moines. She had never needed to go inside. _Always_ walked past it…until now.

Sat in the interrogation office, alone, Sallie stared numbly at the table. There wasn’t anything there that was at all fascinating. There was _nothing_. And that was what she was staring at. Nothingness.

The shame of being interrupted fucking her best friend had finally filtered out of her system, and replaced it was a cold, terrible wrath that her own mind did not comprehended just yet, for it seemed too great for her little, monkey brain to figure out its existence. 

She was waiting for it to rise above the surface of the shield her consciousness created to protect her. It was the same numbness she felt.

The Self-Titled masked remained clutched in her hands, dressed and was forced to return to the city after the police infiltrated the cabin and ruined their Valentine’s night. Something Sallie was looking forward to since…forever.

Her first Valentines night, ruined.

She didn’t know where Corey was exactly, but she was aware he was in another room nearby. He probably has been through the same interrogation as she had.

The door behind her opened. She didn’t react. Instead, she listened for the footsteps of the police officer walking behind her, stepping around the table and sat at the seat opposite her.

The same face, Richard Night, looked at her intensely. His stubble was annoying her now.

“Knight.” Richard grumbled, clasping his fingers together on the table. “So, just to make it clear, what happened?”

“I fucking told you.” Sallie grilled, annoyance evident in her tone. Richard had expected it. “Corey and I were spending Valentines together in the cabin.”

“And you’ve been living with him since Christmas?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because my fucking dad loves his girlfriend so much that he was willing to let me get abuse. And when I stood up for myself, he didn’t like it and kicked me out.” Sallie blurted out, almost sounding rehearsed. But it was clearly the truth. Richard knew her story matched with her friend.

“Kicked out? Okay.” The police officer nodded, folding his arms and leaned back. His eyes cast aside for a time, sighing deeply. And then they flicked back to her. “So you _weren’t_ kidnapped?”

“No, sir.” Sallie instantly replied. “Corey didn’t fucking kidnap me. I went to his place after I was kicked out from home and have been living there for several weeks now.”

“You planning in moving back with your dad anytime soon?”

“Unless his wife dies, no.”

Richard had to admit, he liked how blunt this woman was. But from the detailed description from both Corey and Sallie on how Sam was with Sallie, he understood her hatred towards the woman. It was the perfect motive to leave home, really.

When Richard opened his mouth, there was a knock on the door. He grumbled, rolling his eyes.

“Come in,”

On command, the door opened, and another police officer stepped in. He looked slightly younger in comparison.

“Yeah, he’s not talking anymore.”

Sallie’s face slightly turned, intrigued and listening now, knowing it was Corey they were talking about. “He’s totally off his face.”

Questionably, Sallie turned in her seat completely and looked up at the officer, her eyes fragile and confused.

“Wait, he’s not drunk.”

The police officer and Richard stared at Sallie for a time, and then Richard snorted, shaking his head.

“No. Not drunk. _Drugged_.”

When Sallie snapped her eyes back at Richard, his subordinate whined in grief. He was trying to avoid upsetting the woman, and it seemed his boss wasn’t having any of it, despite the pair of them being innocent.

“Drugged?”

“Cocaine, sweetheart.” Richard grumbled, snatching a cigarette from his pocket and began to light it, his hand covering it, embers glowing from within. “Your friend’s been doing cocaine for a while now.”

Sallie stared, dumbfounded, and it seemed that she was trying to process what was being told to her. Richard watched callously as the woman tried to understand what he said.

“C-Cocaine?”

“Yes, that white powder shit kids snort. You _really_ didn’t know this?” He puffed on his cigarette a few times, igniting it and blew out a large cloud of smoke. “Your friend must have hidden it from you for some time. He’s developed a _real_ addiction to the shit.”

“B-But…wait, how does it-”

“You ever noticed any disturbing actions?” Richard piped up, leaning on the table and studied the colour draining in her face. “He’s been acting weird, his mood swings are fucking everywhere, his pupils have dilated, he doesn’t sleep or whatever.”

When the little woman didn’t reply, Richard knew what was about to happen. During his time in the police force, he had seen this sort of reaction many times. He was waiting for her to scream at him, to deny his facts and storm out.

But he was genuinely surprised when he watched Sallie’s life drain from her face. Her eyes seemed to have faltered in colour, the reaction so numb she didn’t understand how to express it, and so she appeared blank and emotionless. Though within her head was a frightening storm, a storm that snatched all evidence and events to back up this sudden fact and finding the terror well inside of her to realise that Richard was correct. She had noticed strange little tweaks in Corey, but just assumed he was just being, well, Corey…

So, was this Corey she had fallen in love with just some drugged-up bastard?

“I take it from your reaction you had no clue about where he gets it from.” Richard’s voice merged through her throbbing consciousness, and she vaguely understood what he said. She only shook her head, her mind trying to grasp the reality of this shock, a shock too great for her to comprehend in its entirety. “I’m sorry to have ruined this.” Richard lacked empathy in his tone, but it didn’t matter to Sallie. She didn’t needed comfort yet, she needed answers.

“So, it was my dad and his wife that reported me ‘kidnapped’?”

Richard looked up to hear that question, noticing the change of subject. He looked at his subordinate, and back at Sallie.

“Yeah.”

“Tell them I’m safe and fine.” She didn’t seem fine. “Tell them also that I am _living_ with Corey, and that I don’t want to fucking see that cunt of a wife…and tell my dad I will see him when I’m ready…”

“But-”

Sallie stood up, and Richard immediately followed, looking at her. “Hey, wait. You can’t leave yet-!”

“Yes, I can. I am done here, yes?” Sallie quipped, giving both officers a glare.

“But we’re not done with Mr. Taylor-”

Sallie shot a hot look at the younger officer.

“Tell him I’ll meet him at home. I need to do a few things…” She stepped towards the door, and she felt Richard watching after her. The subordinate didn’t move for a time, and Sallie waited.

A pause.

“ _Move!_ ” Sallie shrieked suddenly, to which it horrified the subordinate and he quickly stepped aside, allowing the thundering woman to leave the office. He turned after her, but Richard halted him with a grumble.

“Let her go.” The boss ordered. “She’s not a bad person.” Stepping towards the door, Richard’s dark eyes cynically turned to the interrogation office opposite them, seeing the slumped form of an intoxicated Corey on the desk, his Halloween mask propped beside him, and he was running his finger over it like a lover. “She’s obviously in love with that weirdo.” He shook his head in disappointment. “He’s gonna get an ear-full when he gets back to her.”

“I feel sorry for the woman.” His subordinate sighed, hanging his head low. “It seemed that all she had done was help that guy. And he…” He looked back at his boss. “You shouldn’t have told her about the drug addiction. He told me that she didn’t know, and he didn’t want her to know.”

“Hmph.” Richard grunted, the cigarette rolling from one corner of his lip to another. “It doesn’t matter. Rather she finds out now than the hard way. Too many women get killed for their hearts.” Taking another drag of his cigarette, he looked towards the front doors of the police station, watching them swing slightly from when Sallie pushed them open, no doubt running away crying, the break-down of her discovery finally coming to terms with her. “Keep an eye on her.”

“Yes sir.”

* * *

The apartment door opened, painfully slowly, revealing the shadowy sight of a defeated, broken woman, mask ragged in one hand, limply hanging beside her leg.

Strangely, she had not cried. She hadn’t cried at all during the walk back home, though she felt its presence just underlining her eyes. The build-up was right there, and yet she could not cry. She didn’t know if she had the mental capacity to cry, or that she was simply too tired of crying.

Sallie’s eyes were dry and glacial, staring beyond her frostily.

Regardless, she didn’t know what to do. Her mind was drawing blanks, and even those dark thoughts seemed to have been numbed out. She didn’t hear those voices or overthought anything. She was just hollow, no real conscious thought occurred.

It was as if she was drained from all of humanity, and she was running on autopilot. The outrage and heartache of her revelation so destructive that her entire mind had to shut itself down to protect her from the dreadful downfall of this unearthing, and now she was ambling aimlessly.

The door closed softly behind her with a small push of her hand.

The apartment was dark, curtains shut from the last time they left their home, the air musty and stale.

Blinking slowly, Sallie walked towards the sofa, carelessly dropping the Valentine’s gift from IOWA onto the coffee table, and dropped her body onto it, sinking into the space where it had dipped from excessive sitting.

And there, she stared at the dead screen of the TV, seeing her reflection vaguely visible against its curved surface. Agony sat in her chest, choking her, and even taking a few, deep sighs, the choking did not go.

_Sleep. Sleep will make it better._

_I don’t want to sleep…_

_But it’ll kill this pain away-_

_I need answers,_

_Answers to-_

Sallie’s dead eyes latched onto the corner of the coffee table, seeing the dangling dreadlock swaying off the edge, and she remembered something. Gradually, she lowered herself to the floor, her eyes fixated onto the floorboard.

She remembered how it bulked up from the floor, and it had never done that before, so why…

Pushing the coffee table aside, Sallie pulled the rug and revealed the crookedly placed floorboard. Her fingers pinched the edges, feeling its rough texture, and with a firm yank, she pulled it out of place again, pulling and peeling the plank of wood back and stared down at the dark, little hole beneath her.

After a time of staring down, her hand patted her pocket to feel her phone, and she pulled it out mutely, searching her phonebook for a name that gave her comfort.

**JOEY**

Joey seemed to spark up to her, and she selected it, dialling Joey’s number and waited.

“Hey Sal,”

“Hey Joey…” Her voice was monotone. “I need your help.”

“Ugh, sure. What’s up?”

Sallie stared down at the small bags, spotting a couple of small blades coated in a strange, white powder, some dark patches of what seemed to be blood, and a photo of herself. It was a photo taken when she was with Corey was in _Stairways_ before it shut. The first of the few times she felt genuine happiness.

_Richard was right…_

Licking her dry lips, she spoke again:

“What do you do when you find drugs?”

* * *

Joey immediately came to the apartment, and when he arrived, Sallie was still sat on the floor, staring down at the hole she discovered beneath the floorboard. Corey’s little stash.

The sight of the woman disturbed Joey. He had noticed a significant difference in her. A part of her has died somewhere, and he couldn’t quite place his finger on it. But he knew that this didn’t help, or perhaps was the brunt of the problem.

Joey was standing beside her now, looking down at the small hole she had discovered, and felt his heart ache at the sight of it. He didn’t know what to say, for anything he thought of saying probably wouldn’t help.

“So…” Sallie began, and Joey frowned to hear the depression practically leaking from her voice. “What now?”

“I…” Joey stammered over his words, shrugging, bright blue eyes looking so wretched through his dark locks. “I don’t know…”

Sallie stared down. Her lack of responses and reactions was making Joey a little uneasy. He was so used to the talkative, bubbly Sallie. It was as if he was staring at a stranger.

Joey watched in uncomfortable silence as Sallie tilted her head slightly, contemplating deeply about the situation they were in. And for what seemed like an eternity, she spoke again.

“Joey, get me a small bag please…”

The little drummer blinked, and when she slowly turned to him, her face lifeless, he forced himself to look away and hurried to the kitchen, the sight of a hollow Sallie disturbing. When Joey returned, he gave the bag to Sallie and she began to scoop the content into the bag.

And to the drummer’s heartache, that was when Sallie began to cry.


	45. Unforgiven

The drugs were handed to Des Moines Police Station immediately.

To Richard Night, to be precise.

But Sallie didn’t stay to talk to the police officer, or even dare look at him. She couldn’t handle the humiliation. Instead, she just handed them over wordlessly and turned to leave the station, Joey following her like a shadow.

Richard Night watched the pair of them leave, eyeing up the young man and assumed he was her brother.

And just as he decided to give her advice, she was gone.

* * *

“Please come over, Shawn. I think you can handle this better.”

“Really? Why is that?”

Joey swallowed, looking over his shoulder meekly from where he stood in the kitchen, seeing the small figure of Sallie sitting on the sofa, staring blankly at the TV. It was on the horror channel, and Joey took note that she was watching _The Shining_ , a film he knew she was excited in watching with Corey.

He turned away, tucking the phone closer to his face.

“She’s scaring me, Shawn. It’s like having a dead person in the house…or a stranger.”

“She really that shook up, eh?” Shawn sighed. “Alright, I’ll send Mick over to see dumbass, and I’ll come over. Just try to make her comfortable, okay? She’s probably dealing with a lot of shit still.”

Nodding, Joey understood.

“Yeah. I’ll do my best.”

When the Clown hung up, Joey frowned sorrowfully, looking back to his friend as he tucked his phone in his pocket. Seeing how she hasn’t moved, how her eyes seemed so glassy, the images that flashed on the TV reflecting in her eyes.

And Joey eventually walked through the kitchen and towards her, standing beside her.

“Sal?”

Numbly, Sallie drew her eyes away from the TV and looked up at her lookalike, their dark hairs looking black in the dimness of the light. With night-time coming over to Des Moines and the gravity of the situation, Joey felt far colder than usual.

Hearing no response, Joey spoke up again, twitching his head at the TV as an indicator. “You wanna watch something else?”

“No.” Sallie said in a small voice, her eyes returning back to the TV, watching the infamous scene at the Bar, Jack Torrance talking to Lloyd the Bartender. Joey watched her for a time, taking in her expressions and slight muscle twitches, trying to diagnose what she was thinking.

But all answers fell from him before he could capture them.

“You wanna drink? I make a mean Hot Coco.”

He was expecting a _no_ but found himself feeling a little relieved when Sallie nodded weakly. A small bit of human has slipped through the cracks. Even when she cried back in her apartment, it wasn’t the howling dread of a mourning friend, but instead, a single tear simply fell from her eye with no noise. A part of Joey felt as though she didn’t realise it.

But there was something far more unearthly watching someone unable to express their grief properly, seeing how all humanity ceased up inside, locked away until she was ready to proceed. Joey decided to distract himself and hurried back to the kitchen, preparing his famous Hot Coco…without the liquor. And as that was getting ready, he turned to find a spare blanket, just _anything_ to comfort her. Her pale skin looked so ivory that he was certain she was freezing under the guilt.

It wasn’t long before Joey returned with a spare blanket, approaching the sofa from behind and tucking it around his traumatised friend, holding her in his arms from behind and held her there for a time.

Sallie turned her face and rested it onto his neck, a pitiful attempt of hugging him back. But it was enough for Joey. She was slowly returning to this earth. 

“I don’t like this scene.”

Joey blinked and faced her.

“Huh?”

“This scene…I don’t like it…” Came the murmur, and when Joey looked at the TV, he saw Jack talking to Lloyd about how he once hit his son, ranting about his fury. “He…”

“He what?”

Joey was surprised to hear the bitterness in Sallie’s voice when she replied.

“He acts and talks like Corey…”

A pang of hurt reached Joey’s chest, realising she meant Jack. And he observed the scene, understanding where she was coming from. The way the character, Jack, was talking, how intense his eyes were, the passion of his words as he spoke and drew out every syllable, it seemed rather uncanny, very close to Corey.

A rapid knocking came from the door, forcing Joey to pull away from Sallie.

“Go change the channel.” Joey insisted, turning to the door and opening it.

He was blessed by the face of the Clown, Shawn. “Hey,”

“Yo.” Shawn replied, stepping inside from the chilled night. “Mick’s with Corey. Is she-?”

Joey nodded his head behind him, signalling that Sallie was only there. Shawn’s frown deepened, patting the little drummer’s shoulder and dismissing him to do what he was doing back in the kitchen.

Shawn rubbed his hands together, trying to warm them up promptly as he walked towards the sofa, and crashed onto it heavily beside the blanketed woman. “Ah, _The Shining!_ ” Shawn proclaimed in joy, ignoring the soft glare from Joey in the kitchen. “Fucking legend of a film!” Shawn turned to Sallie, seeing her not reacting at all, and his grin dropped.

Joey wasn’t exaggerating.

Leaning back in the sofa, cross one leg over his thigh, Shawn watched the scene with Sallie, Jack’s wife, Wendy, running down the hall, a wooden bat grasped in her hands.

So distressed, whimpering-

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

Shawn looked at Sallie, her eyes never leaving the TV. She was staring at the scene, but her words were meant for him.

“Tell you-?”

“About the cocaine.” Her lips tightened. “You obviously knew of this. _All_ of you.”

From the kitchen, Joey winced at the darkness in her voice, turning away. He did the right thing in telling her the truth about Corey’s addiction, but he understood her fury.

Shawn studied Sallie carefully.

At last, Sallie’s eyes dropped from the TV, now focusing on her hands that were held together. “Were you afraid I couldn’t handle it?”

“It was…business that should not concern you.”

“Corey _is_ my business.” Strong, blue eyes snapped at Shawn abruptly, looking so fierce. “ _You_ of _all_ people should have known that.”

And for the first time, Shawn had nothing to say to that. She was right, he knew it better than anyone here. Joey was listening to the conversation, praying that this disruption won’t destroy their circle of friends, their family, and _Slipknot_.

“Sal, it was the last thing you needed after all of that shit.”

“But I could handle it.”

“You’re…not handling it well right now-”

“Ever wonder _why?_ ” Sallie’s voice was rising now, becoming louder, more defensive. “Because I found out _myself_. The sheer fucking _act_ that this was _hidden_ from me! And you _know_ how I feel about Corey!” Realising that Joey was in the kitchen beside her, the Brit looked up at him, sarcasm thick in her voice. “By the way, I like Corey and I want to be his fucking girlfriend, if you _needed_ to know,” Her furious eyes turned back onto Shawn, the one who deceived her the most. “But now I don’t know if I love Corey or some drugged-up bastard.”

Joey turned away, shutting his eyes at the hurting in her voice. Still, her emotional state was bringing him faith that she was returning, and now the numbing grief had gone and left her. Only for her anger to come into play.

Shawn could handle this better than he could…

“Sallie, you love Corey-!” The Clown tried to protest, but the little Brit was infuriated now.

“And I don’t know if Corey fucking loves me. All that sweettalk he has said to me, was it the alcohol? Was it the drugs fucking talking?!” She snorted, waving her arms madly like a conductor. “I’m angrier that-that I had to find out this way! If Corey needed help, I would have helped him! With _you_ guys!” Seemingly intense now, Sallie leaned closer to Shawn, brows arched sharply in fury. “Tell me how long he’s been snorting that _disgusting_ shit.”

Shawn was brave. He kept his eyes locked onto Sallie, but he was holding back emotion.

“Since…before Christmas…”

“Before Christmas…” Sallie didn’t even manage to finish her repulsed reaction, her face bowing down into her hands and she remained like this, the overwhelming fact of the deceit just getting greater and greater.

“Sal, I’m so sorry…”

Shawn saw Sallie snarl, knowing she wasn’t taking it, despite it being completely genuine. She rubbed her face with her hands and sighed deeply into her palms, refusing to look at Shawn now.

“I’m staying here for the night.”

The Clown pouted in dismay, not hearing the _‘It’s okay’_ and _‘I forgive you’_ , the typical things Sallie said when someone was sorry. That was something he loved about Sallie; she was always so forgiven. But now, it seemed that Sallie was breaking, that the deceit was unforgivable. “I’ll text Corey. We’ll fix this tomorrow but right now, I wanna be left alone…”

_I need to fucking fix my life…_

“Okay…” Shawn said eventually, reaching over towards Sallie and hugged the little woman. Though Sallie didn’t hug him back, still nestled in the blanket that Joey gave her, but she remained still, not trying any attempt in hugging the Clown back and that crippled Shawn.

Seeing how cold Sallie was being, Shawn sighed and stood up. “Sleep well for me.” Shawn bid Joey a small goodbye, and he left without another word. Leaving him alone with Sallie, Joey finished the hot drinks and gave her one of them, sitting beside her and watched the rest of the movie with her.

Joey felt awful for Sallie, knowing that she was experiencing more pain than he was. Joey was fully aware of Corey’s addiction, but never knew how to go about it. He believed in Corey’s words:

_This is just a pick-me-up; it’ll help kill the depression…I’ll be fine, Joey! Honest!_

And even Joey felt deceived by Corey.

Resting his head on Sallie’s shoulder, he spoke softly:

“We’ll get through this…”

And his twin didn’t reply, wondering if they would get through this at all.

It was just hurting so bad.

_Are we ever gonna be the same?_


	46. Bad Dream

-Something smelled funny. Sallie couldn’t quite place her finger on it.

At first, she smelt blood, but there was something musky about it. There wasn’t enough time to smell it.

But she knew something for sure, she felt light and awfully _cold_. The air was supposed to be freezing, she could tell by the darkness around her, the brilliant blue-hue from the winter moon above her.

Snow. Snow everywhere, hugging her feet and touching her fingers, surrounded by a leafy hedge.

This was a magnificent garden, so charming and magical, like a fairy-tale

Sallie heard something. It was inaudible, but she knew someone was calling for her-

-Crayon. She got a whiff of that…

And bright lights too. It was awful. Turning around, she looked down the hallway, long and narrow. There was no sound. Everything was mute, and yet she was aware that she was not alone.

A little boy riding a tricycle and halted right before her, his long hair draping both sides of his little face.

When the little boy looked up, Sallie stared back at his blank mask. She knew who he was but didn’t know his name.

_Unimportant._

The boy looked terrified now, hands clasping over his white face as she shook tremendously.

Something told Sallie to turn around, and she did, looking at the end of the hall to see a pickle-nosed man and a male Clown standing together, holding hands, dressed in matching frocks.

A sickness scorched Sallie’s throat.

And when she blinked, in a flash the masked twins were up-close to Sallie, looming down over her and blinding her for a moment-

-The pressing silence continued. A flickering image of a distressed woman that Sallie couldn’t describe, but she knew it was her face.

Staring back at her.

Sallie was the reflection, standing in darkness, watching her mirror image brush her hair and turn away, as Sallie watched her leave in reality, she was trapped, stuck in the mirror, unable to break into reality.

All Sallie did was watch numbly-

-Something sweet was in the air. Sweet and poisonous.

_Blood under the nail. Blood on fingers._

Perched on a hard bar stool, Sallie frowned back at the black-haired goliath before her, donned in a pristine suit.

Bartender.

Serving alcohol.

Pouring more in a glass Sallie couldn’t see. Not that it mattered.

_No._

_Yes._

_No-No._

_Yes._

The bartender was speaking, his strong blue eyes holding her, and Sallie replied, a numbing silence between them, but they both seem to understand what one said to the other. Sallie was speaking frantically, ranting about a terrible situation she didn’t know.

And when Sallie glanced at the corner of her eye, she saw Jodie sat on the barstool next to her, naked.

She saw Corey’s face tattooed all over her body.

It would have been a majestic work of art if Sallie didn’t kill her-

-A typewriter.

_Nothingness._

It was blank-

-Everything had been a terrible, destructive silence until now.

The silence was such a strange comfort to Sallie, and suddenly, she got sound.

_Only a single voice. A single sound._

No winds howling, no creaking of floorboards. Nothing.

Just the sound of…

“Stop swinging the bat…”

Sallie slowly turned around, her boots shaking on the steps she stood on, looking down to see a man stepping up the stairs, walking slowly, approaching her.

A wooden bat in hand, wielded, aimlessly swinging.

And Sallie shook to see IOWA approaching up the stairs, his hands open and out in mock-surrender.

Sallie screamed something. No sound. Only IOWA spoke.

“Put the bat down, Wendy.”

Sallie screamed again. Words. Protesting.

IOWA was getting angry; she could feel his eyes.

“Wendy, give me the bat.” Hands poised, fingers wiggling greedily.

After a blink, the bat was swung onto IOWA’s hand. He was suddenly too close to her.

And with a terrible tumble, IOWA collapsed down the stairs, dropping like a ragdoll.

He didn’t move.

_Dead._

Sallie screamed harder.

Nothing-

-Sallie found herself lying on the couch at Joey’s home, staring at the dark ceiling.

She blinked, frowning at the terrible nightmare she just experienced. She had never had a nightmare that was heavily inspired by a horror movie before, so it felt so unreal that she believed it.

Something told her to look.

_Look behind you._

And she did. That was then she noticed there was a sharp sound of wood being destroyed in the eerie dead silence, and the sharpened blade of an axe caved into the white door. That door wasn’t there before.

She should be screaming, panicking that someone was breaking through Joey’s front door. But all she did was stare.

Stare as the axe yanked back and chopped through the wood again, breaking the door down, creating a small caved-in hole. And her heart dropped when she saw IOWA’s face pushing through-

\- “Fuck!” Sallie hissed once her body jolted her awake, the nightmare suddenly seemingly too dangerous for her to experience. And just as her body lurched herself awake, she felt the undeniable feeling of something rising, her instincts demanding her to move _now!_

And she leapt off the sofa, throwing the blanket off her and ran to the kitchen, throwing her face into the sink, and abruptly her voice broke as her body spasmed, squeezing and pushing her insides, and vomited in the sink.

The first streak of vomit that spewed from her mouth burnt her, acidic and hot, watery with no texture. And quickly, another wave chucked itself out of her throat, streaming past her gaping lips, yellow-pink mess splattering messily in the steel sink.

Tears blurred her eyes as she tried to regain herself, hunching over the sink and listened to her body’s warning. For a time, it seemed the vomiting was over, feeling the stomach acids settling in her gut. And just as she lifted her head, she felt the wave returning and immediately threw her face in the sink, her stomach muscles clenching in time with her throat, and more vomit leaked.

She heard footsteps behind her hurrying down the stairs, and from the footfalls she knew it was Joey.

“Sal!” He piped up, rushing towards his friend and immediately gathered all of her hair. Bile had been caught in some of the strands, but Joey wasn’t squeamish. He held it all up for her in a messy bunch and rubbed his hand on her back, seeing the pile of liquid bile in his sink.

He waited and watched her recovering from the sudden sickness, her tearful eyes shutting calmly, brows furrowing against the headache that quickly clouded the front of her skull, panting heavily as if she had run for her life. Her lips were caked in vomit, trembling, suddenly very sensitive.

And gradually, Joey was relieved when he heard her breathing becoming deeper, _calmer_.

The end of it.

Sallie slowly stood up; her eyes still closed as she tried to contain herself, a hand running down her face lethargically.

“Fuck…”

“W-What happened?”

“I don’t…know…” Sallie murmured, her eyes opening, and they ached. “But I had the weirdest fucking dream…”


	47. Sun and Moon

Sallie didn’t sleep for the rest of the night. But it didn’t matter anyway. It was 6am now, and she decided it was best to stay awake. The nightmare had done something to her. It didn’t traumatise her, but it was currently tattooed in her mind and she was constantly thinking about it.

In a strange sense, it alerted her, not entirely paralysed with horror…but just freaked out.

Sitting up on the sofa, feet tucked under her legs, she stared blankly at the TV, watching it with almost inaudible sound. She didn’t want to wake Joey up after he returned to sleep. She was enough hassle for him as it was…

Jessica Fletcher was on a mission in New York this time, solving a murder that had been pinned onto her. Sallie watched _Murder She Wrote_ contently, finding it by accident while surfing the channels and had become intrigued with it. This was the third episode she was on, and it certainly helped keep her occupied.

But she knew it would only distract her until the next time her thoughts returned to the surface.

Soon, she would have to confront Corey.

But the very thought of him…

Sallie began to weep silently into her hands, finding it painful to even think of him right now.

Betrayal. That’s how she felt.

And for someone whom she genuinely thought she knew and trusted…

“Why…?”

* * *

“Spaghetti-O or Beans?”

The lights in _Gateway Market_ was too bright. Sallie hated it. A headache had blossomed out of nowhere and it persisted, craving for attention she didn’t have strength for.

Blinking, Sallie turned to Joey suddenly, hearing his voice but understood nothing.

“What?”

“Spaghetti-O or Beans?” Joey smiled again, holding a tin can in both hands. Sallie’s eyes flicked from the beans to the spaghetti.

“Spaghetti-O.”

Joey’s nose wrinkled.

“The fuck is wrong with you, Sal? Beans are king!”

The banter from the little drummer made Sallie smile, and it has warmed Joey up to see her thawing out from her trauma.

“Nah, mate. Spaghetti-Os are nice! You get bored of Beans!”

“B-But Beans are great! Because-!”

“They make you fart?” Sallie snorted as she watched Joey frowned playfully, tossing both tin cans into the shopping cart.

“We’re not friends for the next five minutes.” And it pleased Joey when Sallie pulled her lips and widened her eyes, pulling a mock-worried face, and stuck her tongue out.

Joey was feeling a bit better himself. Sallie was warming up and was talking more. Even after that strange dream, she seemed to have gotten better. But Joey knew that she needed to return home tonight. He just prayed he does the very best he can to make Sallie feel better, to give her the strength that was there before, before Corey…

“Hey, Sal?”

Sallie had turned away for a moment and was eyeing up the selection of miniature model cars that hung up. _Hot Wheels_ , she used to collect them all the time with her dad back in California…

Come to think of it, where did they go now?

“Sal?”

The Brit returned to the world and looked at Joey, her eyes gentle.

“Yeah, dude?”

The words suddenly caught Joey’s throat and seeing his friend smile and looking at peace at last, he realised with horror that his statement could potentially ruin that. But now she was looking at him, waiting for an answer.

Joey thought quickly.

“I’m sorry about the shit yesterday…”

_Fuck._

Joey shook under the pressure of her relaxed gaze and his consciousness and ended up spewing his original comment anyway. And to his relief, Sallie’s eyes only faltered slightly, but it wasn’t as bad as he assumed it would be.

“You have nothing to be sorry for, Jo-Jo.”

“N-No, I mean…with Corey and…how me and the guys knew but…”

Sallie’s eyes mirrored Joey’s sorrowful gaze, and she stepped next to him, pulling him into a gentle hug.

“It’s okay, seriously. I…” Sallie stopped, her gaze falling. “I don’t really…know how to feel right now…I wanna forgive him but it hurts just thinking about him…”

Joey’s watery-blue eyes fixed onto his mirror-image, and he saw a woman trying to return back to normal far too quickly. She was still hurting, but in order in fixing everything back to normal, she was trying to return back to normality too quickly, and it was bruising her along the way…

“It’s going to take some time, Sal.” That was all Joey could say, having no other supportive material to give her, because in the end, he was just as lost as she was.

A flicker of black bothered Sallie, and her eyes hardened. Looking up abruptly, her sudden movement startled Joey, seeing that she was glaring at something behind him. Joey looked over his shoulder, seeing a shelf full of cereal. But before he could even ask, she was already walking towards it.

Sallie stepped towards the shelves, grabbing a box of cereal and pushed it aside. She had a suspicion, but she was just as horrified to find Corey staring back at her. It was much worse than she anticipated because Corey looked _awful_. The darkness beneath his eyes looked darker, more define. Eyes looking grey rather than brilliant blue, skin pale and sickly.

He wore a worn-out long-sleeved shirt, a shirt that was far too big for him.

Even for one night, it was as if Corey had transformed overnight into this… _thing._

It almost disgusted her when Sallie saw the state Corey was in.

It was like staring at the living dead…

As if burnt, Sallie winced away from the shelf, and seeing her reaction terrified Corey too, also pulling back.

“Sallie!” Corey practically screamed, his voice a mixture of delight and horror.

“Corey?” Joey piped up upon hearing his friend’s voice. Joey’s eyes flicked onto Sallie, and he could tell that she was just trying to decipher what she was thinking. She wasn’t ready to see him, so suddenly and so publicly. And before the little drummer could protect her, Corey had run up the aisle and was hurrying down to the aisle they were on, rushing towards Sallie.

To Joey’s dismay, he saw the cloak of hate in Sallie’s eyes unfolding.

“Don’t fucking touch me-” She barely snarled, but Corey either didn’t hear her or ignore her. He swallowed her up in his arms and held her hard against his body, shivering tremendously as if he had been in the cold for far too long, fingers gripping deep into her back and hair.

“Sallie! Sallie, Sallie, oh my _fucking_ god, Sallie!” Corey cried out, his face pressed into her neck, and she could feel his face crumbling with emotion against her neck.

An old couple noticed the display of affection, and shaking their heads amongst themselves, they continued their shopping trip, dismissing the scene.

Hesitant, Joey looked at Sallie, seeing how she too was battling with mixed emotions. She didn’t know whether to punch Corey or kiss him. The look of utter consternation and loss in her face was heart-breaking. Joey noticed how she wasn’t hugging Corey back, her arms poised in the air, seized and shocked.

And it seemed that when Corey started to weep onto her chest, clutching onto her like a lost child finding its mother, Joey eased to see Sallie’s arms holding around Corey’s back, and her eyes closed, an inkling of mercy, the beginning of repairing something that was broken.

For someone like Corey, who rarely showed his emotions out in public, Joey was impressed how open the vocalist was in sobbing his heart out. But Joey had to think, it was far too perfect to be practically a coincidence, and wondered if this was planned somehow…

The work of a particular Clown…

Regardless, Joey smiled softly to see the two friends holding onto each other so emotionally now. He knew Sallie too well at this point. She was hurting, _always_ hurting, but she fucking loved Corey too much to just dismiss him and abandon him.

They were like two pieces of an ultimate puzzle to life. One cannot function without the other. Light and Dark, Sun and Moon, Fire and Water.

Ever since Joey met Sallie, he found it practically impossible to imagine Corey without Sallie, and Sallie without Corey.

He just prayed that this was the beginning of healing.

* * *

Sallie wanted it to be a relief for her when she returned home, to Corey’s apartment.

But she only found herself feeling a little cold at the sight of the apartment, recalling what happened last time she was in this very building.

Where was his new stash hiding? Is he trying other things? How long has he been doing this for?

All questions unanswered, and strangely not important right now.

Corey locked the door behind her, and yanked her into another hug, clinging onto her like there’s no tomorrow. His hand petted her hair, lips brushing vaguely at the shell of her ear as he hushed her, as if _she_ needed to calm down.

But perhaps he could sense her distress…she still wasn’t herself entirely with him, and he missed her smiles, her voice, her laughs, her _kisses_ …

Corey pulled back from Sallie, looking at her face, and when he smiled lovingly, hoping it would trigger a smile from his best friend, he slowly leaned down, lips puckered, his eyes pleading for a kiss…

Sallie looked away.

That simple notion crippled Corey, knowing he wasn’t free from this guilt right now. And it wasn’t like the anger he saw back in the Market. In her expressions, in her little sighs and body-language, she was nothing but sheer disappointment at his acts, and that was destroying him more and more.

Sallie stepped away from his arms, and walked towards the sofa, slowly sitting on it. Her arms were folded, legs closed together, reserved, cold.

And Corey’s silence seemed to have angered her more.

“Are we gonna talk about it or not?” Sallie murmured darkly.

“Talk?”

“Don’t play dumb with me, Taylor.” There was a bite to her tone that horrified Corey, never hearing his little, sensitive best friend speak like this before. Well, at _him._ But regardless, this was terrible, he felt as though he was getting sent to court and he was guilty of everything known to man…

And perhaps to this woman, he was.

“I…don’t want to talk about it.”

“I _fucking_ do…” Quick reply. Corey didn’t like it. And he felt more distressed that she kept her back to him, not even bothering to look at him. A queen to a peasant that meant nothing to her, wasting her time with such foolishness. “We are going to talk about this. Now sit your ass down here.”

“Sal, I’m tired though…” He wasn’t lying. Corey had a sleepless night and was exhausted. He spent the night worrying about Sallie, and doing something else…

He rubbed his wrists unconsciously.

“I’m livid.” Standing up, knowing that there was no point in ‘sitting down and chatting this over like civilised humans’, Sallie spun around and faced him with such cold wrath in her eyes that Corey took a step back from her, waiting for her to kill him on the spot with just those dagger eyes. “I can’t sleep, and neither will you until we get to the bottom of this.” Knowing Corey would be reluctant in speaking up, Sallie took liberty of doing most of the talking.

She held a finger up. “Number one: Your stash. Where are they?”

Corey’s eyes fell to the floor, unable to bear the insufferable stare of his best friend.

“You emptied it.”

“You have another hiding place.” Sallie pointed out bluntly. And when Corey looked up at her, his face blanching, her eyes hardened. “I can see it that you’ve taken some.” Thanks to Richard Night, Sallie was now aware of the symptoms of the drugs, and it was painfully obvious. Corey’s eyes were dilated, and seemingly came across more cowardly than she had expected. Corey was normally upfront, the ‘big-mouth’, loud and boisterous. But at this very moment, he was cowering under simple words that were laced with justified anger. “Tell me where it is.”

Corey stammered, his eyes scanning left and right, like a schoolboy caught red-handed.

“I-I mean…the floorboard…”

Sallie had _every_ intention in being firm and authoritative about this, but calm and loving.

But when she was suddenly standing before Corey and bellowed, all of that left her, and finally the fury that had been left there to stifle had risen.

“ _Where’s the fucking drugs, Taylor?!_ ”

Her voice bounced around them, and Corey whined softly to feel the screech of her bellow ringing in his ears, mustering every bit of strength to not cover his ears and hide himself. “ _Show me before I fucking lose myself!_ ”

Corey felt the threat in those words, and immediately he turned, hurrying towards the bedroom. Sallie stormed behind him like a shadow.

IOWA was on the bed, to which Corey grabbed it and gently tossed it at the end of the bed, moving it away from him as he turned his attention to his side-table. He caught Sallie snatching the mask and tossing it behind her back without looking back, full force, practically hurling the mask at the wall in distaste. It slapped at the cold wall, sliding down and was left in a crumpled pile of itself on the floor, abandoned.

The singer whimpered to himself, seeing how more and more Sallie was getting impatient, and how she discarded a part of him that she was so infatuated with…

It almost told him that she didn’t love him anymore…

Shaky hands grabbed the small bags of cocaine, and when he turned to Sallie, her eyes did not soften. Military-like.

“Is that all?”

“Y-Yes…”

“Discard them.”

Corey looked at Sallie as if she were crazy, and her brows furrowed darker at his questionable silence. “Fucking flush them down the toilet and fucking remove them from _our home!_ ”

“T-These were expensive!” Corey protested. “I-I could sell them back, and maybe get something nice for you-!”

“I want my fucking best friend back! Not some fucking bastard shit that was bought with drug-money!” Sallie was losing herself the longer she was angry, and even Corey was horrified to see her becoming something so-

She snatched his shoulder and yanked him out of the bedroom, forcing him towards the bathroom. “Fucking get rid of them, _now!_ ”

Pushing Corey into the bathroom, the little woman stood in the doorway, blocking the way out for Corey until he did what she commanded. Her stature was small and adorable compare to him, but the aura of boiling madness radiated off her so immensely, her tiny body shaking uncontrollably with a fury that was not there before, Corey knew he’d be playing with fire if he tried to fight her. Not that he wanted to.

She almost _scared_ him…

Sallie watched with bitter eyes as Corey dropped the little cocaine bags into the toilet bowl and flushed them. Making sure they were completely gone, Sallie stepped away from the doorway, granting Corey his freedom. “Next. These morons you get these drugs from.” Corey looked up at her, listening. “Stop seeing them. Because if you don’t, I will find out who they are. And I will not hold back in fucking slaughtering them. And who gives a shit if I get done for fucking murder, because at the end of the day,” She shrugged heartlessly. “I’ve got nothing else to lose because my fucking best friend is going to fucking die with these bastard drugs.”

Those words were so callous, even Sallie felt her own heart squeeze in hurt. But when Corey’s eyes widen in heartache, she knew her words hit home, and prayed that he took them seriously. “I’m angry at you, Corey. _So,_ fucking angry, I thought I _knew_ you…”

Her best friend said nothing, but he listened, watching as Sallie’s chest heaved in frustration. “But I’ve never been so disappointed in my life before…” Even as she said this, Sallie’s eyes turned away from Corey, unable to look at him at this point. “Never…felt so fucking betrayed…” Now she was losing strength, her voice wavering, and soon the tears would follow. “Go…go to your fucking bedroom, and leave me alone…” Turning away finally, she shut her eyes. “I’m sleeping on the couch tonight. You can sleep alone.”

They were not official, or in any form of relationship, but it was as if it was a married couple on the verge of divorce, and Corey felt every essence of it from this very moment.

Deciding it was best to say nothing, Corey sniffed, holding a hand to his eyes to hide them, and he rushed back to the bedroom, wordlessly, closing the door behind him.

And once he was gone, Sallie threw herself onto the couch and cried hard.


	48. Little Meep

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains:  
> \+ A gentle love-making scene. <3

The night was too cold. Too silent.

Even with the blankets wrapped around her small body, the chill never abandoned her. And deep down, Sallie knew why. She missed the body of Corey with her, missed how she was able to cuddle up with him and felt safe…but she had to remind herself why she was so angry at him. Why she was so hurt…

_I can’t stay mad at him…_

_But you must! You need to prove a point!_

_He destroyed his drugs, and tomorrow I’m gonna coach his ass into rehab._

_He isn’t gonna listen…_

Sallie sat up suddenly from the sofa, resting her head in her hands as she sat there, feeling the pained silence in the once-lively apartment. Contemplating, Sallie stared before her, seeing the dark bathroom, her mind drawling.

_I miss him._

_You’re angry at him…_

_Yes, but it doesn’t mean I don’t love him…_

_But does he even fucking love you?_

_Yes, he does._

_Are you just saying that because that’s the answer you WANT to hear?_

Frustrated with herself, conflicted and confused, Sallie stood up, swaying slightly as her relaxed body tried to adjust to the sudden need of action. Her legs shook softly, shivering from the cold.

She remembered the state Corey was in when she met him at the Market, and how terribly depressed he was when she sent him to his room like a mother to a son. She even strained her ear and heard him sob…

_I wanna see him._

_No, you don’t. You’re furious with him, remember?!_

Slowly, Sallie turned to the door, the desire in seeing her best friend far stronger than ever before, and on soundless feet, she approached the bedroom. The door was closed.

_The anger you’ve shown him will be forgotten if you go in there. All of that effort WASTED._

_That’s why I’m going…_ Sallie grabbed the door-handle. _I forgive him now._

And she pushed the door-handle down, carefully pushing the door open. A slither of light from the window illuminated the bedroom, and she saw the slump form of Corey in the bed. The blanket was over him, but seeing it rising and falling slowly, his breathing deep, she knew he was asleep.

_My poor baby…_

_Not poor Corey! He’s being punished!_

_Fuck off, Critical bitch!_

Delicately, Sallie stepped inside, the moonlight bathing her naked legs and arms. Dressed in her usual sleepwear, a baggy tank-top and shorts, she shivered against the chill that settled in the apartment, and yet inside the bedroom, it felt more warmer, comforting.

The air was thick with the smell of male, of _Corey._

From where she stood, Corey was tucked under the bedsheet, curled up, his back towards her.

The sight of a defeated man, and Sallie knew for certain she wasn’t angry at him anymore. Her hand found the end of the blanket and slowly lifted it, revealing a half-naked Corey. He didn’t shift at the blanket’s movements, and calmly, Sallie sat on the edge of the bed, tucking herself under the blanket and shuffled behind Corey, one arm hanging over his waist, spooning him from behind.

The natural musk of Corey came to her, a familiar scent of peace, and she took a deep breath, her arm holding onto Corey’s body, which was hot compared to her, and she immediately began to warm up again.

And as if the sensation of another human ignited something, Corey muzzily woke up, feeling the small arm over him and knew from the feel of it that it was Sallie.

“Hmm…” Slowly, Corey rolled over, turning so that he faced Sallie, his eyes half-closed and sleep-fogged. “Sal…” Came the small whisper, sounding so drained.

“Hey…I’ve missed you…” Sallie whispered back. And hearing those words gave Corey genuine relief that she was on talking terms with him again. Smiling tiredly, Corey lifted the blanket over their heads, shielding the world away from them, and he tucked his arm under Sallie, pulling her into a firm embrace.

“I’m sorry, Sal. I really am…”

“I know, I’m scared for you. I don’t…” Sallie stopped, but she didn’t need to speak. Corey knew what she was about to say.

Corey hushed her, tucking his fingers under her chin and stroked her cheek with his thumb.

“I-It’s okay, I get it…” Corey sighed, leaning down and pressing his lips onto her forehead. “I promise I’ll quit. I’m quitting, for you.”

Sallie looked up, the humid warmth under the blanket pleasant on her.

“Really?” That didn’t mean to come across so blunt and unconvinced, but perhaps it was a good thing. The hardness in her tone warned Corey that she was starting to lose trust with him, that she was losing _faith._

It cautioned Corey at least.

“Yes, yes, I’m quitting them, babe.” He insisted, clinging harder onto Sallie. “That night you stayed at Joey’s…I thought…I wasn’t going to see you again…”

Sallie’s eyes locked onto Corey’s gaze.

“Promise me you won’t do them again. That you’ll quit them, because they’re terrible for you, and you could get into trouble with the police, and I don’t-”

“I promise.” Corey said calmly, holding up his little finger. “Pinkie promise.”

Sallie looked at the little finger being held up, and with a small smirk, she hooked her own little finger around his.

“Pinkie promise?”

“Pinkie promise.”

“Good.” Sallie whispered kindly, her hands touching Corey’s face lovingly. “I wouldn’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

“I know…” Came the tired reply. His hands cupped her cheeks and he pulled her into a deep kiss. “You mean the world to me, Sal…I want…” He stalled for a time, reconsidering his comment.

“You what?”

It was as if Sallie knew what he was saying, and Corey spoke anyway.

“I want to be…I want you to be my girlfriend but…not this…” He fanned a hand before him, displaying himself with disgust. “I don’t want to be the ‘drug-addict boyfriend’…I want to be your boyfriend when I’m clean…”

“I…”

Corey judged Sallie’s reaction, and he knew she was buffering on an answer, both taken back by his proposal but also his terms and conditions. “I want…you…” Sallie pulled Corey into another kiss, biting his lower lip gently. “I’ve been wanting to date you since…forever…”

“Yeah, I know…it was kinda obvious.” Corey gave her a weak smile, but then it dropped. “But…I want to start afresh and will date you when I get better. I just don’t think-”

“I understand. It’s okay.” Sallie fussed softly, kissing his lips several times now, almost feverishly. “Let’s focus on getting you better, okay?”

“Okay…” Wrapping his arms around her, Corey drew her into a hug beside him, burying his face into her soft hair. He loved the smell of it, both he and IOWA did. “Thank you…for just…being you.”

Sallie and Corey looked at one another, and sharing a sweet smile, Sallie replied:

“It’s okay, sweetie.” She brushed his nose with her nose, nuzzling into his face like a cat. And Sallie pushed herself against his body, sharing the warmth his body emitted and hugged his neck, she nestled her face into the crook of Corey’s neck and closed her eyes, preparing to sleep. Sallie felt Corey getting comfy beside her, his arms holding onto her, hands rubbing her back lovingly, a human touch was what he needed.

And with her eyes closed, she felt Corey’s hand beginning to explore her body, familiarizing himself with it again. He had missed it. His palms stroked the plump hips, feeling them down the curve of her ass-cheeks, and when he groped them instinctively, he felt Sallie tense up, emitting a cute whine.

He caught her glaring at him softly.

“Sleep.” She commanded in a soft tone, but Corey was cheeky.

“I’m not tired.” He bounced back, his fingers kneading into the softness of her ass-cheeks, fingertips gripping in flesh, spreading the cheeks apart teasingly. He knew Sallie was reacting to it well, he could tell whenever her shoulders drew up and her thighs clench. “Not anymore…”

Her eyes remained closed, but Corey didn’t mind. He found it rather sexy, how she was trusting him with her body again, letting her _feel_ him rather than see him. A hand glided around the hump of her thigh, and promptly found itself between her thighs, his fingers pushing between them and attempted to push against her pussy.

They did, just about.

“H-Hey…” Sallie murmured sleepily, but she spied Corey’s cocky grin in the darkness of the blanket, his breathing becoming deeper. Flapping a hand at him, she rolled onto her other side, her back facing him, her small body pushed onto him.

But that was perfect.

With his arms around her, Corey pulled Sallie up, rolling on his back so that Sallie laid on top of him, both facing the ceiling. “Corey…” Sallie muttered, though she showed no signs of retaliation. She wasn’t even fighting.

A groan rumbled in Corey’s throat, sending a shiver of anticipation through Sallie, and he felt it.

“You love it…” He groaned, leaning his head down and kissing her neck, feeling the small woman wince, a sharp hiss of lust through clenched teeth, and when she began to feel him becoming hard quickly, her eyes slowly opened.

“Stop it…” Sallie moaned slowly, her voice honied.

“Nah…” Corey replied thickly, lips grazing over her neck and began to nibble, softly at first, teasing her with what was about to come. “We never did get…a release.”

“Yeah, but Corey-!” Sallie’s statement ended with a small squeak, feeling the teeth clamping harder on her neck, the vocalist sucking against her flesh, performing a slow, endearing love-bite, a hickey. His arms held around her body in a lovers’ embrace, not too possessively, but kind enough to show comfort; fingers splayed to touch as much as he could. One stroked her stomach lovingly while the other found her groin, which was now unguarded, and he pushed his palm against her pussy through her shorts, feeling a heat building up there.

Their bodies remembered how much they lusted for one another, how much they needed such a release that was teased, only to be coldly dismissed when they were interrupted. And as if even their bodies have reunited and forgave each other. They were both quickly reacting to this slow, sensual intimacy.

Corey’s lips popped wetly from her neck, grinning at his work and ran the flat of his tongue over her love-bite, feeling the indents of his teeth there, how rosy the hickey looked.

“I’m gonna…gonna make love to you tonight…” Corey informed affectionately, closing his eyes as he kissed her earlobe through her hair.

The little Brit looked over her shoulder.

“Nothing rough?” She didn’t seem disappointed, just curious.

“Nothing rough. Just you and me. No IOWA, no Slipknot. Just… _us._ ” His hand found the top of Sallie’s shorts, and without hesitation his fingers pushed under, sliding over her lower stomach and brushing past her clit, his fingers cupping onto her pussy lips. But he didn’t finger her yet. He simply wanted to touch it.

The small interaction made the woman squirm slightly in his arms, and Corey loved it. “Aww, did you like that, babe? Like it when I just…stroke?” He proceeded to brush his fingers over her pussy, never penetrating it, though his thumb cheekily touched at her clit, bringing Sallie’s temperature up. He continued to kiss her neck as she arched her back, shutting her eyes again.

“Corey…”

“Yes babe?”

To Corey’s delight, he felt his little friend spread her legs open, encouraging him to do more damage on her. But he was cruel and kept the pace slow and sultry. His hand cupped her pussy firmly, petting it almost.

“Can you just…” Sallie’s hand found Corey’s hand over her shorts, pushing it harder onto her pussy, trying to get his fingers inside of her. She heard Corey snigger, and he pulled his hand out of her shorts, making her whine more. “Why don’t you…?” She whimpered, but only stopped when Corey hushed her.

“Take your clothes off…” Corey whispered calmly, pulling her back down onto the bed, lying her there. Pulling the bedsheet away from their faces, Corey removed his underwear promptly, helping Sallie undress, each movement unhurried and tender, their hands exploring each other yet again as if relearning one another.

And Corey was pleased to see that Sallie understood his intentions.

Once both were naked, Corey laid on his side next to her, his hand stroking her lower stomach, caressing her thighs and her hips. Never touching her intimate parts again for that moment, but instead focused on the _rest_ of Sallie, wanting to love every pore of her body.

Sallie followed suit, her hands brushing down Corey’s arms, feeling his biceps and never noticing the tense muscle that was there until now, feeling far stronger than she realised. She leaned up and kissed his bicep, moving her kisses down to his elbow and forearm, and finally to his hand, nuzzling her face into his palm and kissing each fingertip. With his hand in her grasps, Sallie tugged Corey, indicating that she wanted him on top of her now, missionary position.

And Corey obeyed, only simply lying on top of her. His cock, which was now almost fully erect, pressed against her pussy, but only rested there, his lower stomach holding it down as he settled between Sallie’s thighs. Sure, his body craved for sex immensely, but right now, he was focusing on what he had before him. His best friend. To think this woman could be his girlfriend if he kept his promise. It never really occurred to him that this moron back at work would be in bed with him now, that would hold so much meaning in his life. That she was proof that there were better women out there than Jodie…and he had one in his arms right now.

His arms circled around her head, clasped together above her head and he leaned down, sharing a soft smile with her, their noses touching.

“I’m so lucky…” Corey whispered, to which Sallie shook her head.

“No, _I’m_ lucky.”

Corey’s smile widened, and he pressed his lips onto hers, kissing her slowly. His knees shifted gradually, positioning themselves for sex, and his body-language told Sallie what his intentions were. She too moved her legs, planting her heels into the mattress of the bed, knees up, thighs opened. Her body spiked up in hunger, her hands snatching at Corey’s hips. “Please?” Sallie begged again, her body pulsating and becoming hotter each second, becoming impatient.

Corey tilted his head.

“Oh, Sal. Take it slow.”

“But I want you inside of me.”

“And I will. But just take this moment with me.”

Sallie shook and whined again impatiently, feeling the throbbing of Corey’s cock pressing harder between her pussy lips, which were becoming wet now, dampening the underbelly of Corey’s cock. Her hands released his hips, returning against her chest between them, drawn together, hands balled.

“But Corey…”

Her best friend said nothing, he only smiled, smiling because how grateful he was that she had returned to him. He had lost a beckon of hope and was lost in the dark, only for her to come back.

And he was going to give her the best night.

Lowering his head down again, Corey intensely kissed her, dragging each kiss slowly, their lips meshed together as their tongues met. Eyes closed, the sound of their kissing in the darkness, Corey’s hands found Sallie’s scalp and began to massage it lovingly.

He didn’t want rough, aggressive sex. He wanted to make love to the woman he cared for, to show that he wasn’t a monster.

As he kissed her, their breathing soft, Corey began to slowly grind his hips, pushing the shaft of his cock up between Sallie’s pussy lips, teasingly slow, grazing against her erect clit and he felt Sallie whimper in submissive hunger at it. He only grinned against her lips, silencing her cries with only kisses.

Sallie mimicked Corey’s actions, her heels pushing her hips up against him, amplifying pressure between their hips. His cock was _so_ close to her pussy, but it wasn’t close enough. Just the verge of him being able to penetrate her so promptly was there, keeping her at edge, her blood becoming hot. Her hands pressed onto his chest, stroking down the soft thin layer of body hair that was there, and found his nipples, softly pinching her index finger and thumb at them, making her best friend groan lewdly at this act.

Now, Sallie’s inner thighs were drenched, her wetness leaking down her ass-cheeks and was beginning to dampen the bed beneath her. The gentle foreplay lasted longer than she realised, but it only stoked the fires of arousal that were already growing within them. 

Once Corey stopped kissing, his eyes slowly opened and looked down at Sallie, seeing how her hair sprawled on the pillow, the way she looked up to him, so ready, so willing for him. Ever since she mentioned it, Corey could see the genuine love in her eyes, and was beginning to _feel_ it.

_At last._

He pushed his face against her breasts, cupping her soft breast and pulled the nipple to his lips, and began to suckle on them. His little friend coiled at this, her hands reaching for his head and held him in place, pushing his face into the plump, roundness of her breasts, his own hands grabbing her upper back and pulling her towards him in desire. She mewed his name, so cutely, and while she was distracted by his lips, his hand grabbed his cock and positioned the head against her pussy.

Corey’s eyes looked up from where he was sucking her nipple, seeing Sallie looking down with beg, fully aware what he had done, and with a soft smirk, his hips slowly began to push, his cock pushing through inside her pussy, and Sallie’s eyes rolled back at the penetration, a loud, seductive moan escaping her lips.

“ _Corey…_ ”

“C’mere, babe.” Corey groaned, holding her small body against his, and gradually began to thrust, his love making slow and passionate. Even though they were not fucking like animals in heat, Sallie was surprised with how pleasant this felt. Corey was drawing this out, thrusting and pulling with such a speed that she thought she’d be bored of. But it turned out to do just as much pleasure and justice as their aggressive sessions would.

“My god…” Sallie mewed, her hands shakily reaching for his face, and she grabbed it, her small fingers locking onto his jaw and cheekbones. “What kind of creature _are_ you?” She jokingly praised; her eyes full of love.

And Corey chuckled, leisurely licking his lips as he watched her cheeks flush a cute pink.

“Just…your Corey.”

“My _Faith_.”

“Yes.” Corey smiled in gentle agreement. “Your Faith.” He pressed his lips onto her again, his thrusting becoming a little firmer, but the speed did not quicken. His cock pushed through, widening her inner walls and pulling out almost entirely, coated with her wetness. But he pushed back into her warmth and loved her more and more every time.

There was something different about this. Something that felt so human, so natural. Sallie wanted to believe that this was finalising their connection, their love for one another. And even though she knew Corey wasn’t ready for a relationship, she respected that. She wasn’t actively looking for anyone, and she was certain that Corey wasn’t either. She would wait for him. She would wait until the end of the world for this man.

Corey surprised her with an aggressive thrust, as if to remind her that he can be lethal and cruel, that he could easily turn this into aggressive mating. He watched her eyes widen, a sharp gasp escaping past those kissable lips.

“Meep!”

“Meep?!” Corey snickered, finding the strange noise adorable. He stopped, chuckling more the longer he thought about it, rewarded with a playful slap from Sallie on the chest.

“Stop it!” Sallie hissed, holding back a giggle. But Corey shook his head, looking down at her with unspeakable affection for this human. How lucky he was to have met her, just how blessed he was by her presence. She wasn’t a super-model; she wasn’t a celebrity. She was _human_ , normal and _real_ , and it reminded him that he was normal too.

“Nah,” Corey smirked, thrusting a few more times, hard and vigorous. “Meep! Meep! Meep!”

“Fuck off!” Now Sallie was laughing, and Corey’s chest filled with bliss hearing it. Like breathing new life inside of him, the world becoming a little more colourful.

“Sounds like a terrible car. Or a noise a cat makes.”

“I’m not a cat!” Sallie giggled, hands grabbing his shoulders, only to find themselves running up his neck and behind his head, pulling him down. Corey pressed his forehead against hers.

“No. You’re _my_ cat,” Came the soft, loving whisper. “My little Meep.”

It was a dumb comment, but when he saw the cheeks flushing more, he knew it meant something to her. A cute pet-name that wasn’t universally known. It was a private code between them. Her Faith. His Meep. “You’re like a cat, to be fair.” Corey murmured kindly. “Small and makes a lot of noise. Particularly in bed.” Another playful tap on his head. “Ha, you even do the swipes! Gotta get you a cat-suit now.”

“Shut up and make love to me!” Sallie whined, pulling him into back to her lips and kissed him firmly. Her best friend groaned against her lips, the warmth of their bodies now lethargic and comforting. Corey repositioned his knees, readjusting himself between her legs and did what she commanded, making slow love with her. His hands explored over her soft, ivory skin.

Soon, she knew Corey was close when he pressed his chest onto her, drawing her in a firm, loving embrace, his face pressed into her neck. “So close, babe…”

“I’m getting there too.” She whispered back, turning her face and kissed his ear, running her fingers through the velvet, shaven hair, her pale, small fingers feeding through the dirty blond. Corey thrusted a few more times, deeper and harder, circling his hips which seemed to have inched her orgasm quicker. In a loving, hot daze, Sallie watched Corey work, sweat beaded on his chest and forehead, their sweats merging between them, but they didn’t mind.

It was the genuine connection with another human being.

“You make me feel so good, Sal…”

“Good. I feel the same way about you…”

Snatching her into another kiss, Corey’s thrusting quickened more now, his pants heavy and hard against her face as he kissed her hungrily, and she felt him climaxing when his thrusting got too harsh, the desperate urgency in reaching it, and just as he felt himself orgasm, she soon followed, as if his own orgasm set her off.

They orgasmed quietly, not because they were concerned about neighbours, but because it was intimate between the two. No one needed to see or hear this. Their soft whines and heavy panting, the little groans and lewd whimpers laced one another like an ancient song.

And once they finished, Corey felt Sallie wilt in his arms, squirming slightly underneath him, satisfied with his love-making. And Corey loved the sight of her, her chest rosy-red like her cheeks, sweat sprinkled on her pale body like beads of diamond. She was like a little masterpiece he created.

Entwining their legs and arms around one another, Corey and Sallie held each other firmly, safely tucked under the bedsheet and behind locked doors, nothing more was said. After a few fairy-kisses fluttering on each other’s faces and lips, their bodies relaxed more and more, the urgency of slumber clouding over them.

_I love you, Corey…_

That was what Sallie wanted to say to him, to tell him that she adored this man so much.

But she knew she couldn’t, and the words burnt her throat.


	49. Good Fortune

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This Chapter contains:  
> \+ Drug-use (Cocaine)  
> \+ Two friends being dumb and dirty with one another

Sleep was actually good for once for Corey. No nightmares, no drug-induced jolts awake…

He blinked a few times once he finally woke up, feeling a weight on his arm and turned to see the smaller woman in his arms, nestled contently against his chest. The very sight of her made him smile in relief.

_So, it wasn’t a dream…_

Holding onto Sallie for a moment, making sure she was real, Corey took this moment to relive the moment last night. A passionate, slow love-making.

Giving her a soft kiss on the forehead, he heard a small snore from her, which made him grin, placing her in the warmth of their bed and carefully shifted out of bed. Sitting on the edge of the bed, making sure he didn’t wake her up, he sat there, staring tiredly at the window.

_I’m cutting drugs…I’m fucking cutting them for her…_

His eyes glanced at the side table, and soundlessly he pulled the drawer open, seeing that…

His heart sank at the sight of a little bag of powder.

_Fuck, where did this come from? I need to get rid of this!_

Surely in the spur of the moment, he had left one bag out by accident. Leaning down, he picked it up, gradually standing up and turned to the mask that was on the floor. Its empty eyes staring up at Corey, the dreadlocks a mess of dirty ropes.

Corey swallowed hard, grabbing the mask and walked out of the bedroom, leaving his little _Meep_ to sleep.

Creeping to the bathroom, Corey placed IOWA on the sink, his eyes dropped to his palm, the fingers opening and revealing the small bag of drugs.

**_One more hit before you get rid of them…_ **

“No….” Corey whispered to himself, the voice suddenly becoming very real.

**_She won’t know…_ **

“She would. And I promised her…” His palm shook hard, eyes wide and starved.

**_Promises are meant to be broken, Corey…_ **

“No….” He whimpered slowly, watching as he powdered the last three lines on the sink edge.

**_NOW DO IT!_ **

Corey’s eyes snapped at the mask, seeing that it was taunting at him. He was struggling now with himself and his drug addiction. The starvation was biting at his insides, his mind crushing within itself, threatening in committing suicide if he didn’t get his fix. Everything was hurting, everything was bleeding and wanted to _die!_

That little voice in his head…the drugs were so much stronger than he was…

Promptly, he lowered himself to the cold surface of the sink, pinching one nostril and began snorting…

_…each…_

_…line…_

The rush he felt was sublime, indescribable, like an orgasm within the skull and it blossomed so hotly, so _alive!_ His body tingled with the quick release and he snarled, turning around to the door and slammed it, locking it quickly.

Corey snatched the mask and held it against his chest possessively, sliding down the wall, and a wave of emotion struck through him, clutching at his heart and pulling, _ripping_ -!

Silently, he began to sob.

“I fucking hate you…I fucking _hate_ myself…”

Gradually, he pulled the mask over his head and fastened it tight around his skull.

The slamming of the door didn’t go unnoticed. It startled Sallie awake, and for a terrifying moment Sallie thought she was back at her old home, hearing Sam abruptly waking her up as if she was in the military…

Then again, the military was much kinder compared to living with such a monster like Sam…

But when she smelt Corey on her, and saw his bedroom, she was _safe_.

_Where’s Corey?_

“Corey?” Sallie mewed, slowly dragging herself out of bed. She rubbed her eyes, her breasts soft and relaxed, her naked body feeling so sexy and empowered. Wanting to investigate where he was, Sallie picked up her shorts and tank-top, quickly putting them on.

_Maybe he’s in the kitchen…_

With that in mind, Sallie left the bedroom and saw the bathroom door closed.

_Oh, he’s in the bathroom._

Feeling relieved that he hadn’t left her, she walked to the kitchen and turned the kettle on, deciding to surprise him with a coffee.

Corey was standing now, looking to himself in the mirror as he held a small shaving blade to his throat, glaring at himself. _Hating_ himself…

His hand shook terribly, the blade glistened in the painful light.

**_You don’t have the balls to do it…_ **

Corey was shaking harder, the drugs pumping through his system. He’s done way more than that and had much better outcomes, but this…it was as if the last bag of cocaine was punishment rather than a pleasuring forbidden fruit…why was this _now_ a problem?

Was it because of Sallie?

**_Stop blaming her and blame yourself._ **

“I…blame…no one…but…” Each word was strained, pained and clenched.

**_MYSELF_ **

His eyes looked at the side, almost unable to bear witness of the blood that was about to spew out, seeing the purple bottle of shampoo. It was Sallie’s shampoo, the one that smelt of fuchsia flowers and lilies. And it seemed that the sight of her possession warned Corey of the consequences of his suicidal action.

**_You wouldn’t want to destroy that sweet little MEEP, would you?_ **

“Don’t…fucking call her that…” Corey snarled at the mirror, looking back at a sneering IOWA. IOWA tilted his head at him.

**_I’m not the fucker with a blade to his throat…_ **

Suddenly, Corey threw the shaving blade in the sink and stepped away from the mirror, hearing a distinct mocking laugh as he unlocked the door.

Slowly opening it, Corey stepped out, hearing the clatter of cups and a teaspoon, knowing it was Sallie. He didn’t smile. But he was quiet. So quiet. He was like a ghost as he turned to the kitchen and walked up behind Sallie, seeing her scooping a spoonful of coffee and putting it in a cup, preparing hot drinks for them both.

When Sallie felt a pair of arms holding her from behind, hugging her, she was surprised to see the mask’s dreadlocks grazing against her. A whiff of latex. Confused, Sallie turned around in his arms, and saw that Corey was wearing IOWA. While she was a little confused by IOWA’s sudden appearance, she was more concerned about his actions. He wasn’t eccentric, or hyper-focus on sex or _her_ , but he was quiet, almost timid…

Something wasn’t right…

“Oh, hello…” She said softly, however, running her hand over his masked face caringly.

“Hey babe…” Corey mumbled, his head hanging low. He sounded so sorrowful, but Sallie couldn’t be sure. It was strange. Corey didn’t let her go, nuzzling into her shoulder lovingly, his naked body pushed fully against her. He felt her stiffen slightly.

Sallie’s face turned to his dreadlocks.

“You okay?” She whispered kindly, stroking his latex cheek, his mask haunting.

There was no eye-contact. Corey shook his head slowly, moving his hands so that they rested on her hips. The mask helped him, however. If she would have seen the look that he had under the mask, it would most likely destroy her. He had to keep the mask on…

“Ohh…” Sallie mewed sadly, running her fingers through the dreadlocks. “It’s okay, I’m here. I’ll look after you.” Pulling Corey into her arms firmly, pushing her face into his chest, she kissed his chest understandingly. She felt Corey’s arms tightening around her.

Behind the mask, tears ran from his eyes, the coldness of the mask the only comfort he could feel. A home that he was familiar with. A _sanctuary_. He didn’t speak, he didn’t have to, for he knew Sallie would care for him.

He felt her hands running down his body, finding his ass and groped them, making him let out a very soft whine. 

The soft whine almost hurt Sallie, and he saw through the blackness of his mask his best friend looking so pained. “My poor dickhead…” She whispered caringly, holding his face against her shoulder and began to rock calmly, a comforting sway. She dotted kisses on his latex face, dragging her lips to his and hesitated in kissing directly on the lips.

_Fuck it._

She kissed him. And that kiss sparked something. But that was it. A small little spark. His body was defeated, drained, but…

Corey kissed her back, holding her tightly against him, pushing her against the counter. But his kisses seemed loveless, cold, nothing like his kisses from last night. That worried Sallie.

She pushed him away, looking at Corey with deep concern, and for a time she was wondering what was happening inside that head of his. After last night, she wasn’t expecting Corey to be so… _sad_.

Hesitatingly, her hands lifted and grabbed the hem of his mask, slowly pulling it up-

That scared Corey. Eyes widening, he grabbed her wrists tightly, halting her.

“No…I…” He swallowed hard. “I want…to keep the mask on…” His voice, it was so hollow, as if he had died.

“Corey, what’s wrong?” Sallie’s voice was firm. Sincere.

“I…” Delicately, he lowered her hands down from his mask, moving his palms so that he was holding her hands, and finally looked back at her. His eyes were shadowed, his voice so shattered. “Withdrawals…” He lied.

“It’s okay,” Sallie replied, kissing his lips through the mask. “You’re much stronger than you realise.”

Corey felt disgusted with himself, how Sallie took in such a simple lie just like that…it was almost as if she was trying to lie to herself too…

He slowly hugged her back, holding her so close, pushing her face against his throat. And when he felt her kissing his neck, he shut his eyes hard, recalling how very close he was in slitting it.

_Change the subject._

His eyes glanced at the kettle.

“Uh…making coffee?”

When Sallie pulled back, she gave him a sweet smile, trying to brighten the situation, trying to help Corey forget about the drugs.

“Yes.” She beamed, playing with the dreadlocks of the mask. “I was gonna surprise you in bed with coffee, and a naked Sallie, but…” She stuck her tongue out at him.

His eyes smiled sadly.

“Can you make mine extra strong?”

“Sure.” Sallie nodded, turning around and adding an extra spoonful of coffee. Corey watched her with lifeless eyes. When she went to get the milk from the small fridge, she hesitated, having an idea. Making sure Corey was in the way, she turned him to her direction, and with him facing her, she turned around and, teasingly, she bent down, purposely pushing her ass against him. “Milk is at the bottom, right?”

It wasn’t.

Corey cocked an eyebrow, but then his fingers grazed against her thigh.

“Of course, it’s always at the bottom.” He smiled a little more.

“Hmm…” Sallie felt his smile. She was winning. “I can’t find it, unless I’m a blind dickhead.” Dropping herself onto her hands and knees, lowering down and posed like a dog, ass in the air, she swayed her hips teasingly at him. “Where?”

Corey kept watching her, feeling that spark happening again. Something inside of him was simmering. He wasn’t sure what it was, but it always set off whenever Sallie acted like a minx, and he felt himself becoming softly aroused at the sight. Playing along, he unhurriedly lowered himself, hunching over her like a dog about to breed. Pressing his lips against her shoulder, he grumbled:

“Strange…” He kissed her shoulders again. “It was here last night.” He let out a small moan, pushing his hips against her ass, letting her feel his flaccid cock against her pussy through the shorts.

He took a deep breath when he heard the little woman whine cutely, feeling her pushing her ass harder against him. And he knew what Sallie was doing.

Even as a joke, this was sexy. To feel his naked body on her like this was exhilarating for Sallie. She fucking loved it. She didn’t know why, but since last night…all she wanted to do was fuck Corey like horny rabbits.

“I can’t find it…”

Corey kissed her shoulder again, his lips moving to the bite-mark that was a darkened red now, and kissed it.

“Looks like we might have to go get more then…” Corey muttered, but then he suddenly pulled away, making Sallie sit up and face him. “Oh wait!” He said softly, grabbing his balls gently. “It’s right here.”

“There you are!”

_There’s my Corey Taylor…_

She reached up and groped his balls, standing on her knees and watched him, her hands calmly rolling his balls. Corey let out a soft groan, pulling her against him and kissed her neck.

He seemed to be back, but Corey knew deep down that it wouldn’t last. Any bit of happiness was better than nothing.

“I never want to lose you…I…think you are the reason I want to be sober…” He whispered to her hair. Sure, he was high, but he knew what he was saying…

He knew what he would say when he would go through the detox process. He didn’t want to get through that yet…three lines of cocaine usually got him through the day.

But he was already feeling the effects wearing off…which was strange to him.

His comment pleased his best friend, however.

“Oh Corey…” She nuzzled her face into his. “It means…so much to me. I…” Suddenly, she buried her face into his neck. “I don’t want to lose you, you make me…so happy…”

_I love you!_

**_FUCKING SAY IT, MORON!_ **

Sallie swallowed the words hard. Why was it so much harder to say them now?

Her hands were still cupping his balls, and Corey loved the warmth of her hands on his balls. It strangely brought him comfort, just the thought of something constricting his delicate parts made him feel good. He wanted her to squeeze them…

“I’m…done with all of this shit.” Corey’s eyes lifted to her gaze, seeing how brilliant blue they seemed in the morning sunlight. “The drugs…the alcohol…I want to sober up. I want to get clean. I want _you_ …”

**_Now…Co-….rey….that’s….n-…hap-…_ **

That voice in his head was getting weaker…and for once, Corey felt better about himself.

**_I-….OWA……N-….FIN-….FUC-….EK!!_ **

He saw Sallie’s eyes brighten. After what happened the last few days, she was so pleased to hear how willing he was in getting clean. It wasn’t some damn sleep-talk, but he was being serious about this.

“Well done. Honestly, the first step is always the hardest, and I cannot be more proud of you.” She meant every single word of it. Corey’s strength was shining to her. She stared at him for a long moment, taking in the details of his mask, his eyes watching her, and for once she saw Corey wearing a mask…and not IOWA.

Suddenly, she released his balls and shoved her hands at the nose of the mask. “Penis!” She piped up playfully, making the man smell his own sweaty musk.

Corey laughed at the sudden invasion of his own scent, but he grabbed her wrist, slowly turning his eyes to the hand and licked it, teasingly-slow, as he tasted his own muskiness on her hand, and rumbled a long, heated groan. His tongue glided over her palm.

Her heart stopped as she watched him lick her hand, so sexily.

“Fuck.”

Quickly, Sallie snatched her wrist and forced him onto his back, looming over him as she abruptly bit his neck, her nails digging into his chest in want, hearing her best friend growl softly, his hands moving to her hips, squeezing them determinedly.

“That’s…it, babe…” The feeling of his drugs was dwindling quickly now. It was almost like the monster he had become was vanishing with the drugs…or that monster was taking the drugs out of his system…

“Corey, I need to fuck you again…” Sallie let out an intoxicating groan, pushing her hips down onto his groin, feeling his cock.

From the bedroom, they both heard a phone ringing. Corey and Sallie stopped, eyes staring at each other. It was Corey’s phone.

“Who the fuck is calling at this time?” Corey muttered rhetorically.

“You…wanna answer that?” Sallie mewed, trying not to let the disappointment enter in her voice. “It…might be important.”

She waited for Corey to answer, his eyes glancing down for a moment under his mask.

“Yeah…”

Understandingly, Sallie moved, allowing her naked best friend to hurrying to the bedroom and answer the phone. Frowning in frustration, Sallie stood up and turned back to the coffee. From the kitchen, she could hear Corey talking. It sounded like it was Shawn. But when a spike of glee came to Corey’s voice, Sallie’s interest thickened.

“Shit, I can’t believe it!” A pause. “I- Yes! I’ll let her know, of course!” Another pause. “Tonight, of-fucking-course, we’ll be there!”

Sallie leaned back, seeing Corey pacing around the bedroom, naked, stifling a grin as she watched his cock and balls sway at his aggressive pacing, and made a mental note of teasing him about how they reminded her of a flag in a tornado. And as soon as Corey finished the call, she stepped out of the kitchen, seeing Corey yanking the mask off his head, and her heart fluttered when she saw that smile.

“Corey-?”

“Sallie! We’ve done it!”

Sallie blinked.

“D-Done what?”

“Our first album! Our first _fucking_ album! The Self-Titled album got accepted by _Roadrunners_!”

“Road…?”

Corey was now before her, his hands grabbing her arms in aggressive excitement.

“They’re a Record Company, babe! Our self-titled album has been accepted and they want us to record our next one with them!”

Finally, Sallie realised what this meant, and Corey watched as tears flooded in her eyes.

“So…you mean…?”

“ _Yes!_ ” Corey cried out, absolute joy in his voice. She hasn’t heard Corey sounding so happy before, and the pure elation in his eyes was what made her cry. It was such a sweet sight. “ _Slipknot_ is going to be…a _real_ rock-band…”

Corey watched as Sallie crumbled in his arms, her smile so bright that it made himself tear up.

“Oh my god, Corey!” Swallowing him up in her arms, she clutched onto him and wept happily. “Fuck! Corey! You guys are gonna be famous! You guys are-!” And she blubbered delightedly, shaking violently in his arms, feeling Corey’s face pushed into her shoulder and wept too.

“We’re gonna be famous, Sal! We’re gonna make it big!”

And the best friends slumped onto the floor of their battered apartment, crying their hearts out ecstatically as they were finally blessed with good fortune.

At last.


	50. Never Leaving

“ _Yeeeee, boyyyy_!” Rose was the first one to announce the presence of Corey and Sallie, her voice sharply clashing with the heavy metal that played from the speakers in the living room. She turned around to the crowd of friends that congregated in the living room and kitchen. “Yo, guys! Corey and Sallie are here!”

Sallie’s cheeks immediately flushed red from the sudden attention, but she didn’t mind it. Under all of the eyes of her friends, she felt safe rather than judged. Corey stood behind her, his fingers brushing the back of her arm and giving Sallie a brave smile, he walked past her, already swallowed in the arms of Paul.

Just as Sallie stepped inside the warmth, Rose closed the door and was immediately in front of Sallie, her eyes wide, staring at-

_FUCK!_

Sallie’s hand clapped at the side of her neck, realising that her pitiful attempt in hiding Corey’s bitemark didn’t stop Rose from noticing it.

“A hickey, Sal?!” Rose practically piped up, almost having little to no discretion.

“Don’t-! Ssh!” Sallie urged, looking up to find, to her relief, no one heard Rose’s innocent exclamation. Grabbing Rose and pulling her aside promptly, she winced when her friend stabbed a finger at her neck.

“Naughty!” Rose giggled, and when Sallie leaned down to whisper, she smelt alcohol on her breath and clothes. She was drunk already?

“Rose, are you drunk?”

“ _Nahhhhhhh_!” Rose smirked, fanning a hand at Sallie’s face, clipping her nose with her fingers clumsily. “I’m Rose, dumbass!”

“Yeah, you’re drunk…”

“I love you,” And Rose draped her arms around Sallie’s neck, clinging onto her. “I love you-you so much, like a sister!”

“But we barely…” Deciding against arguing with a drunk Rose, Sallie smiled softly and hugged her back, knowing at that moment she was trapped in Rose’s arms for a while, the drunken woman latching onto Sallie like a baby monkey to its parent. “Love you too, Rose.”

Rose giggled foolishly, and to Sallie’s relief her bitemark wasn’t mentioned. Corey’s bitemark was more subtle, a gentle nibble from a lover, while Corey’s was a sign of a deep, passionate love-making session, deep and red. Even Sallie’s hoodie couldn’t hide it.

The house was heaving, despite not having too many guests under the roof. Some faces Sallie didn’t know, but they seemed nice enough, giving off a friendly vibe, friends and family from the other Slipknot members. She saw Chris and Sid leaning on the counter in the kitchen, drinks in hands, talking about something. Jim lounged on the sofa with Liv, an arm draped over her shoulders and pulled her closer to him, talking to another long-haired male, a welcomed stranger.

The heat of the building was immense too, with _Metallica’s Orion_ playing in the background, the scent of strong alcohol and cooked food thick in the humid air.

Sallie lugged Rose with her, holding the drunken woman further into the crowd of friends. But Rose suddenly perked up when she saw Joey, standing up unexpectedly with her arms wide open.

“ _Joey!_ ” She squealed, laughing as she hurried towards the small drummer, and almost tripped over a chair. Mick caught her effortlessly, his eyes never leaving the TV, which was playing the sports. Soccer, with the _Des Moines Menace_ team.

Free from a drunken Rose, Sallie turned to see Shawn approaching her, rather sheepishly, and she knew why. Once the Clown was before her, he spoke:

“Hey Sal, I-”

He stopped talking when Sallie embraced him suddenly, and he knew he didn’t need to explain himself. The Clown held Sallie hard, his nose pressed into her neck and for a moment, they didn’t move, their simple embrace speaking enough words.

“We’re gonna fight this together,” Sallie said to the Clown’s ear. “We’re gonna fix this problem together, like a family.”

Shawn pulled away, still holding Sallie’s arms and he gave her a wide smile, the injury from his betrayal no longer there.

“Yes, I couldn’t agree more.” Shawn grinned. “I’m…just glad you and Corey are here. We’ve missed you both.”

“And we’ve missed you too.”

Shawn beamed a smile again, hugging the small Brit hard for a second time before pulling her towards the kitchen, his hand displaying the impressive homemade buffet.

“Eat to your heart’s content. I know you don’t drink, so the kettle is there, and dickhead is…” Shawn looked up, searching the room and saw Corey sitting on a plush armchair talking with Jim and Liv. Paul had approached Corey from behind, grabbing his head and kissing his forehead, alarming Corey, who only laughed when he realised who it was. “There. Everything is set!” He patted Sallie’s back, holding his thankful smile at her. “Glad you’re back with us, Sal.”

“It’s good to be back home.”

Someone hollered Shawn, to which the host of the party turned, and giving Sallie a wink, he walked towards his friend, leaving Sallie to her own devices.

Her fingers fidgeted for a moment, relaxing at last, feeling so good to be around such good people.

_Coffee._

Like an instinct, Sallie turned her attention to the kettle, figuring out where the mugs were and began to make herself a coffee. Waiting for the water to boil, she turned back to the party and watched everyone bustling around her. Her eyes automatically locked onto Corey, watching him for a time. Seeing how intense he was in watching the game with Mick, a can in his hand.

She adored this man so much, and to think he was willing to be her boyfriend…when he cuts the drugs.

Sallie had to think over that. It was a good promise, something rewarding to look forward to with becoming clean and starting again. And with this album being accepted, with another one ready to be recorded, Sallie had high hopes for this year.

“Yo, Sal!”

Sallie turned to see Chris, and even though he wasn’t wearing his mask, his eyes was what Sallie remembered the most. The majority of the boys in the band had blue eyes, but each blue was different from the next, a different shade, an entirely new window to their soul. Chris seemed content, relaxed, having no real issue and looking so spry today. While Corey sometimes looked so glacial and broken, greyish-blue at times.

“Christopher!” Sallie greeted with a singsong tone, seeing the percussionist holding his fist, and she responded with a fist-bump. “How are you doing?”

“It’s been great so far,” Chris announced, leaning against the counter and took a sip from his beer can. “I’m so…fucking pumped about this surprise Shawn has for us. He seems super hyped about it.”

Sallie’s lips opened, but then she decided to hold back. So, did only Corey and Sallie know of this? Would make sense why the party was just…a house party, and not a rowdy scene of celebration. Yet.

“I’m sure it’ll be worth it.” Sallie promised, smiling almost knowingly. She spun around and continued making her coffee.

“That’s a hickey.” Chris pointed out, turning to the fridge and taking the milk out for her, seeing the small woman glaring at him playfully.

“No law against it.” She smirked, taking the milk and thanked him. She soon returned it back. “Just ignore it.” She requested, pulling the hood of her hoodie up higher on her neck.

“Corey?” Chris asked, cocking a dirty-blond brow. And all Sallie could do was splutter a forced laugh. It probably was painfully obvious, but both Sallie and Corey agreed to remain as friends in front of the others, just to save tensions and hold back promises of a romantic fairy-tale. Besides, Sallie respected Corey’s wish, and thought it would only complicate things. They weren’t together, but they’ve done stuff…

_Fuck buddies…_

Sallie hated that term.

And so, Sallie understood why Corey instantly kept his distance from her, to lessen suspicions. Though just watching him there, his lips puckering against the can of beer and how his laugh was so seemingly distinct now amongst the crowd’s babbles, all she ever wanted to do with him was kiss him.

But forced to keep her distance, it was suddenly very hard to just act as friends now. Her hands felt starved of his body swiftly, her ears straining to hear every single word that man produced, her eyes aching for his smiles, her mind crippling with the lack of him.

She hated this feeling quickly, it was purely frightening, unpredictable. She didn’t know what to make of it, and yet she somehow knew what this feeling was. This paralysing heat that bubbled up inside of her chest, and every time Corey was near her, her spirit felt relieved and settled, in the right place.

If this was the sensation of falling in love, she was starting to grasp the concept of the _fall_. It was fucking _terrifying_.

She was most likely going to break something. Or die.

Probably die.

The urgency in hugging onto Corey consumed her, and she felt herself becoming rather unnerved when a woman approached him, and he cried out in joy, arms open as he hugged onto her. A friend he hasn’t seen in ages.

_Get off him…get off him, please…_

“Sal?”

Sallie looked at Chris swiftly, looking shocked. But Chris smirked softly. “You zoned out on me. I said have you ever done karaoke?”

Heart pounding, abruptly feeling breathless, Sallie kept her focus on Chris, trying to distract herself from the dark, stormy cloud that risen brusquely from the horizon of her consciousness, a rumbling boom of cynicism threatening her.

“I haven’t…no. I haven’t sang for a long time…” Sallie admitted, her voice seemingly small. Chris didn’t seem to realise the internal battle she was experiencing.

“Paul bought this fucking awesome karaoke machine.” Chris nodded his head at the TV, indicating a strange tall machine, one that looked like a brand-new CD player. “We’re gonna have a go at it.”

Sallie took a shaky sip of her coffee and grimaced at the strength of it. Bitterly strong. Shawn either had expensive shit…or cheap crap.

“I might…I don’t know.”

“Hey, it’s not like it’s a concert,” Chris joked, seeing the nerves in her eyes. “It’s for fun, _remember_ that.”

Sallie could only give Chris a thin smile, busily drinking the coffee as she watched the woman leave Corey, and she felt a sting of envy bleeding inside of her.

_No, no, fuck off! I don’t want to feel like this! I’m a good person! I’M A GOOD PERSON!_

_You shouldn’t have fallen for him, fuck-face…_

The party continued, with Sallie distracting herself with Mick and Barbie, promptly leaving them when she noticed the pair of them getting flirty. She jokingly dismissed herself and decided to sit at the far corner of the room, watching the party as she went to drink more of her coffee…

Her heart sank. The cup was empty.

But thankfully, Shawn was tapping a spoon to a cup, the clanging noise it made cutting through the heavy metal and the chatters between friends.

“Guys! Guys, it is time!” Turning his face to Craig, who was sitting beside the CD player contently, Shawn pointed at him. “Craig, turn that shit off for a moment.”

The mute Sampler smiled, turning to the CD player and paused the music, silencing the room. With all eyes on Shawn, the Clown grinned to have everyone’s attention. “Right, guys. I have a very important announcement.”

“He’s coming out of the closet!” Rose blurted out with a snort, and Joey laughed from where he sat, cupping his hands over his mouth.

“Ha! _Gaaaaaaaaay_!” He joked, making their friends laugh together, including Shawn.

“Fuck off!” The Clown sniggered, shaking his head and continued his speech. “ _Anyway_ , there is a very, _very_ important reason why I have gathered you all tonight.” He placed a hand on his chest, his eyes gazing around every face in his house. “As you know, we _Slipknot_ have been working very hard on our Self-Titled album. I got news this morning, from a record company called _Roadrunner_ , that they are interested in our album, and want to produce it!” The room burst out with gasps and cheers, but the Clown held his hand out, silencing the premature celebration. “Hush! That’s not the best part!” With a bright smile, Shawn’s chest heaved with delight as he finished. “They also want us to work on the _next_ album, which Corey and I have been working on for a few weeks, and they want us, this shitty small-town band, to go to their recording studios and record the _fucker_ right there and then!”

That was when the entire house filled with a burst of celebratory cheers, hands clapping. Rose screamed at the top of her voice.

“You fucking serious?!” Jim cried out. “Like, we’re gonna be a fucking rock-band?”

“Yes!” Shawn answered with pure elation. “Guys, we’re gonna be fucking famous!”

All at once, the members of Slipknot leapt from where they sat or stood, and hurried towards Shawn, circling the Clown with a big group hug.

Sallie smiled at the sight, feeling so proud of these guys. Joey began to cry, his face squashed beneath the daunting arm of Mick, sandwiched between Craig and Mick. The rest of their friends and family clapped in congrats to the band, and Sallie joined too, feeling tears aching her eyes. A mixture of joy and fear, and she didn’t understand why.

“Where is the recording studio?” Barbie asked once the band broke the group hug.

_Yes, that was a very good point._

Sallie was certain it was the small recording studio at the edge of Des Moines, she remembered Paul mentioning it to her. But when she saw Shawn hesitating, she didn’t like it.

“Oh…yeah, about that…” Their friends and family became quiet, waiting for Shawn’s answer. “The studio is sorta far from home…” He murmured, rubbing the back of his neck.

“How far?” TORQUE cocked a brow, the bodybuilder lounging in another armchair.

Shawn gave them a guilty smile.

“Malibu…in California.”

“Holy fuck, California?!” Liv squealed, looking up at Jim in utter excitement. “That’s amazing!”

“California, baby!” Sid was giddy about it, jumping up and down like an excited child. “Never fucking been there before!”

“This is fucking awesome!” Mick boomed, and the crowd rambled in exhilaration of the new beginnings for Slipknot.

And even Sallie was excited for them.

_California…fuck, I’ve missed that place._

The music resumed after that, with the bandmates turning to their friends and sharing the excitement of the news, new crates of beer were opened, and the alcoholic games began.

Corey saw Sallie still slumped in her seat, looking rather small yet comfortable in the plushness of the armchair, and walking towards her, he caught her attention, to which Sallie looked up and gave him a small smile.

“California, hey?” Corey grinned; hands tucked into his jean pockets. “Fuck…never thought we’d be going _there_!”

“I sorta forgot there is more outside Des Moines,” Sallie giggled softly, feeling her laugh edged with blades. Her eyes looked away suddenly.

Corey paused, squatting down beside her, a hand reaching out and grabbing her small fingers.

“Hey,” His soft command made Sallie slowly look at him, and she anxiously chewed her lips. “You okay?”

“Yes,” She lied. “Just…surprised.” She forced another smile. “So proud of you guys.” It wasn’t that she wasn’t proud of them. It was just a factor that suddenly rose to her mind, something she hasn’t considered, and unpredictably the very thought of it frightened her.

_They would leave Des Moines…_

“Yeah, I’m proud of them too…” Corey agreed, looking over his shoulder, and knowing Sallie too well, he stood up, pulling her hand. “Come outside. I need a smoke.”

Reluctantly, Sallie stood up and followed Corey, seeing no point in fighting with him.

Once they were outside, Corey pulled out a lighter and a crushed box of cigarettes from his back pocket, lighting one in his mouth. He blew the smoke away from Sallie politely, looking down at her. “Right, talk to me. What’s up?”

“I’m okay. It’s just…” Sallie stalled, and she knew that even if she denied it all the time, Corey would dig and dig and dig for that damn answer. Sometimes it was just easiest to be honest in the first place. “I’ve got…shit running through my head.”

“Like what?” Corey asked, the cigarette bouncing between his lips as he spoke. He watched Sallie for a time, looking so small and fragile in the night. Her lips pulled in a frustrated, thin smile.

“I don’t…know. I guess it just never occurred to me that…you guys would potentially _leave_ …” Her throat surprisingly tightened against the emotion in her words, and she paused to compose herself. “California…wow…”

“Leave to record an album. We’re not leaving _home_.” Corey reassured her, understanding her concerns completely. “I couldn’t fucking leave you. Not even for _Iowa_.”

The mention of the name made Sallie frown, and when she looked up at the vocalist, Corey corrected himself. “It’s the title for our next album. Not…the mask.”

“Your…next album?” Sallie repeated. “Why…did you name it _that?_ ”

Corey’s eyes held her gaze firmly.

“There are _so_ many reasons behind it, babe.”

There it was again. That little name… always said when no one was around. It was like they were hiding their relationship when she was truly passionate about announcing it to the whole world. Forced to hide her emotions for this man.

She was afraid of touching him now. “Look,” Sallie looked up at Corey. “I know Shawn wouldn’t just fuck off here without a thought, despite knowing how much we fucking hate it here. It’s _home_.” Corey began to pace around the back garden, taking in deep inhales of his cigarette and blowing toxic smoke out. “We have too many ties in here. Too many people we care for.” His eyes looked back with Sallie, a sudden brilliant blue in the moonlight. Forever changing. “I want to take you with us.”

He waited for Sallie to register what he said. After a small silence, her jaw opened.

“You…can you do that?”

Corey shrugged.

“Don’t know. But I’m not fucking going anywhere without you.” His head nodded at the party behind them. “Same with Liv, Rose and Barbie. They’re our emotional support team, just as you are for _me._ ” Smiling softly, he stepped towards Sallie, a hand stroking her cheek. “I couldn’t just _leave_ you.”

“You…fucking thought about this before I even knew…” Sallie whimpered, shutting her eyes and giving him a fragile smile. “I…thank you…” Sallie didn’t know whether it was appropriate to hug him, but her question was answered when Corey pulled the cigarette from his lips, opened his arms and scooped Sallie into a hug.

“You’re coming with us, Sal. You and the girls. We’re not leaving any of you behind.” Pressing his lips on her forehead, Corey added: “And I am _not_ leaving you behind again.”

The best friends held each other in a loving embrace after that, the night cool and calming against their skins. They knew they had a whole night of partying ahead of them, dumb drinking games that Sallie would most likely try to compete in with water, the karaoke machine and banter between friends.

But right now, they were content with just standing in the dark, quiet backyard of Shawn’s home under the moonlight, holding one another tightly, a silent promise of staying together.


	51. Resign

**1995, March**

Stretching, Sallie opened her mouth and yawned, a tiredness that never seemed to have left her. She stood behind the counter back at _Lover’s Playground_ , watching as a young gay couple inspected the new sex toy range that had came in that week. She shared tired smiles with them. It made her happy that such a couple, which typically would be frowned upon holding hands in public, felt safe and content being themselves under her roof. Of course, she wasn’t the boss of this place, but she worked here, and was incredibly proud to be part of a business that accepted all kinds of love.

Love was love, at the end of the day. What was so wrong with two men falling in love? She thrived on the fantasy of a masked Corey chasing her in the forest and fucking her senseless. If anything, her sick fantasy was more potent and disturbing than two men falling in love.

Gay marriage never bothered her. Let people fucking love one another…

_Yeah, just let us fucking morons love whoever we wanna love…what’s so illegal about that?_

“Love, you look so done in,” One of the men joked, giving her a sweet, sympathetic smile.

“I’ve had a bad night’s sleep.” Sallie replied softly, straightening up from the counter. Partly the truth, partly because she couldn’t sleep at all. The relapse of her woes and worries returned to her, and even curled up in Corey’s arms, she felt a little insecure about it.

Speaking of Corey…

Sallie unconsciously glanced over her shoulder, seeing Corey sat by the small table in the canteen at the back, taking a long drag of his cigarette as he read a newspaper, bored. Something about Corey’s air seemed to a bit off today, and she felt a little unnerved by it. Not wanting to pick on him about it, she decided against asking him for now.

“Oh, honey,” The other male customer chimed, catching the Brit’s attention. “Could you help us decide which one we should pick? A whip or a paddle.”

Sallie gave them a reassuring smile, walking away from the counter and approached the gay couple.

“I mean, it depends what level you’re at,” She mewed kindly. “Ever used a paddle before?”

“I’ve used a paddle hairbrush!” Came a charming laugh.

Corey winced at the terrible joke. Rolling his eyes, he licked his fingertip and swiped the page over, his eyes gazing down at the black lettering on the newspaper. Nothing was holding his attention too well. Instead, he had a cloud of anger sitting inside of his head.

It had been twenty-seven hours since he had his last dose of cocaine, and the withdrawals were coming down onto him harder than ever. If he could, he would have happily rammed Sallie into the counter and fuck her ridiculously, just to give his body that need he craved for, replacing his cocaine addiction with sex. But he couldn’t. He _knew_ he couldn’t.

Furiously, Corey’s eyes looked up at the door to Emma’s office. She was in today, and he didn’t understand why, but Emma had been on his back all day today, constantly picking on small details, right down to the specks of dust that had began to build up on the dildo display. He didn’t even _know_ he had to clean the fake dicks… If anything, all of his time of being here, he never _needed_ to. It was as if Emma was trying to piss him off or make him do more shitty work than he already had.

He was anxious about _Roadrunner_ now. Shawn hasn’t heard from them, and he was starting to believe that, maybe, that little ray of sunshine had been destroyed by a storm.

His addiction was rubbing hard on his nerves, stinging his tired eyes, and his frustration with this fucking world was pulling him to the edge.

He heard Sallie laugh, a sweet, high noise, and it reminded him how she giggled during sex the other night. How he adored that sound and knowing that it wasn’t for him pissed him off more.

Closing the newspaper and carelessly tossing it at the end of the table, he leaned back in his seat, foot pushed against the table and tilted his chair back, taking another drag of his cigarette. He had a new one prepared once this one was finished.

“Thanks again, love!” Came the feminine male voice, the adoring couple leaving the store with bright smiles. “Tell your boss you’re a _wonderful_ addition to this damn boring city.”

“Thank you.” Sallie giggled, her voice soothing Corey’s temper. A little. “Come back again and let me know how it goes!”

The chime of the front door sounded, and when the door closed, Sallie returned to the counter, walking into the back now that there were no customers, and she saw Corey sitting there, his fingers massaging the bridge of his nose. “Hey,” Sallie chimed softly, stepping towards him and touched his shoulder, stroking it. It was tense. “You okay?”

“Yeah…just…” Corey didn’t bother finishing. He fanned Sallie’s hand away, wary that Emma was here, and any form of contact she gave to Corey could trigger another session of constant arguments with the boss. Even something as platonic as rubbing his shoulder was enough.

Sallie held back the hurt that built up in her face, making sure Corey didn’t see her. And at that point, she knew she had to say something.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Just…” Corey wanted to face her, but almost too scared to, he looked _away_ from her. “I’m fine…”

“You’re not.” Sallie argued kindly, her hand stroking the back of his head. “This isn’t my _Faith_.”

Corey snapped a glare at her, slapping her hand away.

“Professional, Sal.”

“Jesus Christ, _okay_!” Sallie bit back in hurt, hating how authoritative and cold he was becoming. She was fully aware that Emma was here too, but not even small comments like that was acceptable. She was only trying to help. The hurt bled through her words and face, and just as Sallie began to walk away, Corey turned in his seat, knowing what he had done.

“You can have me when we get home.” He added quickly, hoping that he didn’t lose her at that point, but his only reply was a muttered ‘ _Whatever’_ from her, her attention drawn back to the store at the front. Corey bit his lip, wanting to chase her down and hold onto her.

A door opened beside him, and his heart sank to know what it was.

“Corey.”

Corey spun around, seeing the tall, formidable Emma standing there.

“Yes, Emma?”

“In my office, please.” She murmured, retreating back into the office. Corey’s heart raced, but he stood up and followed her, closing the door behind him.

Sallie swallowed hard, hearing Emma’s order and was beginning to panic.

_It’s okay, Sal. Corey is the supervisor; they’re having a meeting! It’s allowed!_

_Yeah, but-_

_Don’t overthink it. It’s gonna cripple you. Distract yourself._

For once, her thoughts had sense to them. Her eyes glanced over the lingerie that was falling off the coat hanger, and she decided to fix it, her mind tracing over any details that seemed out of place. The Valentines section needed to be removed, but until she was told otherwise, she wasn’t going to touch it.

And very, very soon, her fear became true. From Emma’s office, she could hear Corey rising his voice. He was already in an irritated mood, and she just prayed that-

“Why the fuck would you bring that up now?!” She heard Corey snapping, and Sallie couldn’t refuse to pay attention. She turned to the counter, listening, the voices unmissable. “That happened last fucking year!”

“I had to consult the area manager.” Emma’s firm voice vibrated from within the wall, slightly muffled, but Sallie could make it out. “And upon evidence of the incident, I’m afraid it has come to this.”

“You can’t fucking _demote_ me! I held this fucking building up with my own shoulders when you’re not around, which is 90-fucking-percent of the time!”

“Corey, please-”

“No, you fucking listen! You can’t demote me over an incident that occurred when you weren’t even there! Aren’t managers supposed to work _in_ the store, and not leave every fucking week? Sallie’s injuries occurred because of _outside_ sources!”

“Yes, which _you’re_ involved in. Not only was its _Jodie’s_ sibling, but you were _drunk_ when it happened! Sallie could have died!”

Sallie’s eyes widened.

_Fuck, no…no, not this!_

Pacing towards the office promptly, Sallie’s heart throbbed in her throat as she heard the aggression in Corey’s voice become thicker, her panic mounting inside of her.

“I just don’t think you’re cut for this position, Corey.”

“I’ve been supervisor for _three_ fucking years here! Why is it _now_ that I’m not good enough to be supervisor? What have I’ve been doing wrong all of this time?! Just because you and the fucking area manager are best friends and suck each other’s clit, you make us little people, the fucking idiots that hold this damn company up, feel like we’re in the wrong all the time!” Corey was getting worse, and when Sallie found herself knocking on the office door urgently, she flinched at Corey’s voice. “This is _none_ of your concern, Sallie. Get back!”

“It is!” Sallie cried out from beyond the door, too terrified in opening it just yet. “I’m the one who should be in trouble, not Corey!”

“And how is that?” Emma’s voice was terse, and losing her temper herself with everything, Sallie grabbed the door handle and pulled the door open, seeing a red-faced Emma and an absolute-furious Corey.

“I had shit with Jodie, and she obviously sent her brother to get _me!_ Not Corey.”

“But Corey was intoxicated while it happened!” Emma shouted back, making a point, and she saw Sallie hold back. It was awful because it was true. “If Corey wasn’t drunk at work, it wouldn’t be such an issue since it’s already resolved, but I _cannot_ take another chance like that, Mr. Taylor.” Emma’s eyes snapped at Corey, who was glaring at her hatefully.

“Another chance? How about fucking staying _here_ for a few weeks rather than vanishing off all the fucking time!”

“It is business arrangements!” Emma argued back. “It is work-related!”

“Yes, but what if something like that happened to _me_ if Sallie wasn’t here?” Corey bellowed, making Sallie’s blood run cold. It was the same kind of tattered yelling Corey did back when he was singing _Scissors_ in the Hotel California, and Sallie began to get the relapses of terror from that night. She hated this kind of Corey, the shouting, livid one. “The fuck would you do then?!”

“I _would_ be here, that’s the point-!”

“Would you really?” Corey laughed hysterically, narrowing his eyes at his infuriated boss. “Because you’ve left me alone in this dump several times!”

Emma’s chest heaved in exasperation, her eyes sparking a terrible thunder behind them. Corey shifted, turning to storm out, but then stalled, facing back Emma. “You know what?” He sneered. “I’m fucking done with this place. Fucking done! Take this job and shove it up your ass, Emma. I’m gonna be a rock-star, and I won’t have to tolerate with you and your shitty people-skills. I’ll be my own boss!” Emma said nothing, frowning in confusion at Corey’s statement.

But Sallie’s heart dropped.

_No, no, you can’t leave me here!_

Sallie stepped inside, grabbing Corey’s arm.

“He-He didn’t mean it!” Sallie cried out in defence, trying to save Corey’s job. But he snatched his arm away hostilely.

“Fuck off, Sal! I fucking mean it!”

And very abruptly, Sallie forced herself against the far corner of the small office, frightened away. Corey was too deep in his fury, ignoring his terrified friend and glared at his boss one last time. “Fuck you, fuck this place, I’m fucking gone!” He snatched the pin-badge on his shirt and threw it across the room aggressively, turning on his heels and storming out of the office. He gathered his stuff and was gone.

The store was suddenly silent.

Emma tutted, looking back at the small member of staff in the corner of the room.

“Sorry you had to see that.” She muttered, a little coldly, turning back to her desk. “I need to make a call.”

Sallie remained pinned in the corner of the room, her eyes wide and terrified, locked onto the floor, trying to comprehend what had just happened.

* * *

“Yeah, I sorta gathered that’s what happened.” Shawn’s voice was full of disappointment. Sallie could feel it. “Withdrawals are getting worse for him.”

“He needs help,” Sallie replied, readjusting her Nokia to the other ear, walking down the aisle in _Gateway Market_ again. Emma had let Sallie finish work early, and not wanting to be back home right now, she decided to walk home, entering the store along the way. “But I’m glad he’s with you right now. He was…”

“A bit of a dick to you. I know. He told me that.” Shawn sighed, taking a drag from his own cigarette. “He said he wanted to speak with you. You up for that?”

Frowning, Sallie pondered. In all honesty, she wasn’t up for talking to anyone. Shawn was the one that called her to inform her that Corey was at his place, and she was content just calming down alone for now. But hearing that Corey _wanted_ to speak to her…

“Sure.” Came the half-hearted reply. Her eyes scanned across the products, eyeing up some ready-made meals and was considering what to have for food tonight. A couple of steps more to the side and she was looking at the home-bakery section, her eyes taking in all of the fantastic colours of the baked goods.

“Sal?” The weary voice of Corey emerged suddenly. Sallie smiled faintly in relief.

“Hey…”

“Look, about before, I’m really sorry. I just…snapped, and I didn’t want you to get into trouble.”

“That’s why I got involved.” Sallie sighed softly, her eyes falling. “I don’t…understand why Emma brought that up again. It was _months_ ago.”

Corey snorted softly in disgust.

“I know, right? Stupid bitch wasn’t even there at the time…” An awkward pause. Sallie turned her attention to the variety of boxed cake-mix. “I never meant to shout at you…” Now Corey sounded really sorrowful, and it broke Sallie to know he was on the verge of crying. “I don’t even know why…you were just…” He choked with emotion, to which Sallie closed her eyes, hushing calmly down the phone.

“Shh, Corey, it’s _okay_.” She insisted gently. “I don’t hate you…just sad that you…quit.”

“I had to, Sal. I was beginning to hate working there.”

“But you had _me_.”

“I know, but with Emma constantly on my back, I just got to breaking point.” A pause. “Besides, we’re gonna be big, Sal. I won’t need a shitty job like that.”

Sallie frowned.

“What if this shit back-fires…?” She meant to say it more carefully, more delicately. But it didn’t seem to matter because Corey took offense to it already.

“The fuck do you mean? Don’t you believe in me?”

“I didn’t fucking say that.” Sallie grilled, holding back raw frustration and took a moment to calm herself down, though she was still acid tongued. “I just worry about you, okay? I care for you a lot.”

“Why, though? I’m a fucking mess.”

That comment incensed Sallie more than she realised. She had to hold back her own offended comment, and after a heated growl, she spoke again:

“I’ll let you figure that out.” Fed-up with that statement and the conversation, Sallie pulled her Nokia away and hung-up without thinking, cutting lines with that grating conversation, only to bitterly regret it almost instantly.

Corey’s reluctancy in understanding why she cared for him so much angered her, severely. As if her affection for the bastard wasn’t obvious enough. It was as if he didn’t believe her, and she didn’t know what else to do to make him realise that other than to fucking _marry_ him…

_Dating me would be a good start…_

Seeing that she wasn’t getting an instant call-back, she tucked the Nokia in her pocket and glared at the cake-mixtures, her eyes scanning over the tubs of buttercream frosting.

And she pulled out a vanilla cake-mix box.

* * *

It was late. Later than he planned.

But Corey was back home now, finally returning after drowning himself with alcohol just to kill the heartache. He wasn’t drunk yet, but he could feel himself going.

When he entered his apartment, he frowned at the strange, sweet smell that shrouded his home. The scent of baking. He closed the door behind him and turned towards the kitchen. Music was playing too, from his CD player beside the TV. _Slayer_.

_This is fucking weird…_

Dropping his keys in his pocket, he approached the kitchen to see Sallie there, feverishly standing over a counter. The small oven was empty now, but the heat it emitted was still strong, filling the air hotly.

And just as Corey entered the kitchen, Sallie glanced over her shoulder and smiled weakly at him.

“Welcome home,” She mewed, turning her attention back to the cake-tin she held with a pair of new oven mitts. Corey murmured a reply, but she didn’t hear him. His gaze fell, feeling the tension between them. For a moment, he didn’t know what to say.

“What are you making?”

“A cake.” Sallie stated bluntly, as if it wasn’t obvious. “For you.”

Corey blinked.

“Why?”

Sallie shrugged.

“Just felt like it…” Her tone was soft and seemingly sad, and Corey felt the need to hold onto her. He said he was sorry, and he knew she accepted it, but it was evident that she was still a bit pained from this morning.

Stepping towards her guiltily, he approached her from behind, his arms carefully holding her around her waist and pulled her into a gentle, remorseful hug. Sallie stopped gradually, closing her eyes and sighed deeply.

“It smells good…” Corey muttered against her hair, slowly rocking her in his arms.

“Thanks.”

When she dropped the utensils onto the counter, she turned around in his arms and hugged his neck, making sure her fingers didn’t touch him as they were covered in bits of sponge cake and icing.

“I’m really sorry…”

“I know you are.” Sallie whispered, and she felt Corey turn to her neck and kissed it.

“Seriously, I fucking mean it.” Corey whispered back, his voice sounding pained. “I didn’t…mean to hurt you-”

“Shut it.” Sallie said curtly, her arms holding him firmer. “It’s fine,”

It didn’t _sound_ fine. But instead of annoying her more, Corey accepted it and hugged Sallie tighter. When the moment of peace passed, Sallie looked back at Corey, giving him a small smile.

“So, what kind of icing is it?” Corey asked, changing the subject.

“Why not smell it and _you_ tell me.” Sallie replied, pulling away from Corey. The vocalist stepped towards the counter, bending down and sniffing the sweetness there.

“Smells like-”

Suddenly, Sallie grabbed Corey’s skull and slammed his face into the cake. Corey jerked back up rapidly, his mouth open in a soundless gasp of horror, buttercream frosting and cake splattered on his face.

Sallie was smirking now.

“That’s for telling me to fuck off this morning, asshole.”

Corey slowly looked at her, and when she saw that familiar twinkle of Corey return to him, she knew she hit gold.

Corey suddenly charged to her, his hands up and ready to grab her face.

“C’mere, bitch!”

“Nahhh!”

Corey gripped onto Sallie’s face, pinning her against the counter and kissed her eagerly, purposely smearing the cake all over her face, their giggles rippling through the apartment.


	52. Welcome to California

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains:-  
> \+ Blood/Self-Harm/general nasty scene

**1995, April**

After two months of arrangements with the record company since the announcement, Shawn _finally_ heard word from the company. Hope was beginning to fill the Slipknot family. And it was even better that Roadrunner was accepting in allowing Rose, Liv, Sallie and Barbie to join the band’s travel to California.

 _It would be great for emotional support,_ they stated. Considering none of the bandmembers have ever been to California before. Only Sallie has ever been to that state, and when Joey dedicated her as their tour-guide, she laughed.

_I didn’t fucking live in Malibu!_

Regardless, their jobs were postponed, their flights were arranged and soon they were on their way. It was only a three-hour flight, so it wasn’t for too long.

Shawn was the team-leader of the group gathering, taking the lead through security and explaining to those who have never flown before what to do. Corey remained close to Sallie, always standing by her side, which Sallie didn’t mind. She felt rather comforted that he was beside her.

When everything was ready, they boarded their plane, brimming with a mixture of fear and excitement. Out of everyone, Sid was frightened of flying. He was one of the many who has never flown before, and even the reassuring words from Shawn and Sallie didn’t help him too much. Sallie was rather amused by it, considering how eccentric Sid was, how he climbed like a monkey in the wild, and yet the concept of flying in the sky was terrifying to the DJ.

“You’re most likely to die in a car crash than a plane crash,” Chris piped up in hopes it would calm Sid. But when the percussionist announced that a bit too loudly, gathering the attention of many other passengers, Sid’s fear grew more in his eyes, snatching Mick’s arm and dragging him away.

“You’re staying with me, big man!” Sid panicked, holding Mick’s arm like a shivering, small child with its father. Sallie tutted and looked at Chris, her eyes stating how that probably didn’t help poor Sid.

Joey was kind enough to exchange seats with Sallie so that she could sit next to Corey. And unlike Sid, Corey kept his nervousness hidden. She noted how he gripped onto the arms of the seat, his eyes staring at the wings. They were about to take off in a few moments.

Sallie brushed her hand against Corey’s.

“Hey,” She cooed softly. Corey faced her, smiling at her thinly. “You’ll be fine. I’ve flown before.”

“I-I know, just a little nervous…I’ve never…been in a plane before and it’s cool but…yeah…” He glanced away, missing the adoring smirk from Sallie. There was something adorable and cute how macho Corey would act at times, but right now, a small vulnerable part of him was coming out, and she loved it so much. Her hand grabbed onto his, making Corey let go of the arm of his seat and held onto her hand tightly, his hand clammy and cold from sweat. He shook slightly.

Sallie knew the withdrawals were starting to hit him harder than ever, and she wished she could help him. But right now, she had to wait. She lifted his hand to her lips and kissed the back of it, making him glare at her for the public affection, but he noticed how Sallie didn’t cower or flinch.

It was like she didn’t _care_ , didn’t care that she was with _him._

“I’ll look after you.” She reassured him, just as Liv sat down beside Sallie, a book tucked against her chest. She smiled brightly.

“Yes! I’m with you, Sal!” Liv grinned, seeing Corey tucked in the corner and waved at him. Corey waved back timidly. And to no one’s surprise, Jim was seated beside Liv. He pushed their luggage in the compartment above them and sat down in his seat.

“You scared, Sal?” Jim grinned, locking the seatbelt around his waist and grabbed Liv’s hand instantly.

Sallie shook her head.

“Nah, I’ve flown many times before.”

Liv squirmed in her seat, giving Jim and Sallie a nervous smile.

“Not gonna lie, I’m a little nervous about the take off.” She mewed, to which Sallie replied:

“Hey, it’s not too bad. When you’re in the air, you kinda forget you’re flying.” Sallie held her other hand out. “You can hold my hand too, if you want.”

Liv giggled, grabbing Sallie’s hand tightly.

“I-I might actually wanna do that.” Liv admitted, and she felt Jim lean over behind her, holding his hand out to Corey, who was staggeringly silent.

“Hey, big-mouth, wanna hold my hand too?” Jim offered jokingly with a chuckle. Corey glared at him.

“Fuck off, Jimbo.” He snorted, dismissing the guitarist’s offer.

Sallie nestled between Corey and Liv, the cabin crew preparing for lift-off and the captain announcing their flight was about to begin. Behind her, she heard Sid squeak in terror when the plane began to reverse, followed by a laugh from Shawn and Mick.

Liv nuzzled her face into Jim’s chest, who was sitting straight and brave. Sallie saw this from the corner of her eye and smiled to herself. It was adorable, despite Jim never flying before himself. But he didn’t seem to fear the journey.

When Sallie turned to Corey, he was staring at the window, his eyes holding a sense of primal fear as the plane was rolling down the runway, preparing for the take-off. She suddenly pushed her face into Corey’s chest, making the vocalist look down at her.

“Sal?”

“I’m scared…” Sallie replied, which confused Corey.

“How are you scared? You said you’ve flown before.”

At that point, Sallie looked up at Corey, and Corey felt a stab of want in his gut when his eyes locked with hers. He fucking adored everything about this woman.

“I’m trying to make you look manly,” Sallie hissed with a cheeky grin before she pushed her face into his chest again. “I’m scared of flying!” Sallie whined in mock-fear. Corey looked at Jim and Liv, and sharing a soft smile, he placed a hand on her head and stroked it, feeling a little better since her ‘fear’ was outshining his.

“It’s okay, I’ll look after you-” Before he could finish, the plane suddenly burst into acceleration, and Corey immediately clutched onto Sallie in shock to feel his body being dragged back and pushed hard against the seat.

Sid was whimpering, promptly being told to ‘shut it’ from a grumbling Mick behind. Meanwhile, Rose was screaming at the top of her voice, her hands in the air as if she were on a roller-coaster ride, promptly being scolded by Barbie to be safe.

Smirking at the banter behind them, Sallie looked up at Corey again, and even though she could still read the fear growing inside of him, he looked down, and gave her a brave smile.

“Mile-high club after this?” Sallie whispered subtly to Corey, making her best friend smirk, then he genuinely thought about it, and when he grinned dirtily at her, she realised her grave mistake and tapped his nose. “I was joking!” She hushed.

Corey groaned.

Corey slept after the take-off; his head lolled against Sallie’s shoulder, arms folded across his chest lazily and small snores left his drooping lips. Liv was contently reading her book with headphones on, and Jim was talking quietly to Chris at the other end of the aisle. The flight had set off so early, and many of the members were too excited to sleep. Now, after the initial take-off, the majority of the passengers were sound-asleep.

Sallie stared at the window, seeing the bright blue skies, the wing cutting through the clouds effortlessly. Her mind was venturing elsewhere. When she had nothing left but her thoughts to entertain herself with, she found herself quickly tipping into the dark corner of her mind that she tried so hard to avoid.

She admitted, she hasn’t told her dad about her unintentional flight to California. Their stay was going to consist of just three mere days, so she assumed that being out of the state for three days wouldn’t be as terrible as if she were to go away for three weeks instead.

Besides, it’s not like he hasn’t done it with her, vanishing out of state without a warning. Her birthday, for example…

Though, she has heard nothing from him, and just from that thought she realised how much she had missed him. It was almost like she lost her own father too.

Her eye muscles tightened, her face turning down to the sleeping Corey, and she kissed the top of his head delicately.

“Love you, dickhead.” She murmured, the worry for her best friend becoming frighteningly stronger each time she looked at Corey.

*

The three hours was quick. Corey felt as though he had blinked and swiftly Sallie was shaking him awake.

“Oi, c’mon, we’re here.”

Corey blinked the sleep out of his eyes, looking around to see that other passengers have gotten out of their seats and were already taking their hand-luggage out from above their seats, walking down the narrow aisle.

Stretching his arms and legs, Corey yawned and shook his head.

“Fuck, really? I didn’t realise I fell asleep.”

“It’s the quietest you’ve ever been, Big-Mouth!” Jim laughed, passing Sallie’s hand-luggage for her, and grabbed Corey’s duffel bag. As always, Shawn took the lead and everyone followed him, making their way off-board and towards the main terminal.

 _Santa Monica Airport_ wasn’t as big as any of them have expected. In fact, it was far smaller. But it would make sense, considering it wasn’t an International airport like the one in Des Moines.

And just as Shawn stepped onto the escalator, proceeding to go down to the main entrance, he grinned brightly, turning around to the others that gathered behind him.

“Hey guys! Look at this!” He pointed towards a person who stood by the main doors, holding a sign amongst the small crowds of travellers.

**SLIPKNOT**

“Damn, I feel like a real famous person!” Jim grinned keenly, nudging the mute Craig, who smiled eagerly.

Once they all gathered at the bottom, they all walked towards the person with the sign. Small and round, his face beamed a huge smile at the crowd of friends that gathered towards him, knowing that he had found the band and their friends. Dressed all in black, long black hair with a tuff of hair tucked under his large chin.

“Slipknot?” He asked, and Shawn nodded, his hand opened wide to represent his entire band proudly.

“The one and only!” Shawn chuckled, grabbing the man’s hand in a handshake and pulled him towards him, patting his back in excited merriment. “You must be George!”

“Yes, and I take it you’re Shawn. Also known as _The Clown_ ,”

Shawn nodded, unzipping his backpack and pulled out the infamous Clown mask, presenting his pride and joy. George clapped his hands excitingly, jigging.

Corey stood behind everyone, but seeing a fat, middle-aged man dancing like a little fangirl made him cringe in discomfort. He was finding anything and everything irritating at this point, but he tucked himself away from sight, not wishing to interact with anything and anyone. The excitement for their fame was there, but he could feel his grumpiness clouding it.

George sighed, placing his hands on his hips and looked at the crowd of youngsters before him.

“Boy, I admit, I don’t even recognise any of you without your masks.” He chuckled; his large belly rippled. And beckoning with a meaty hand, he directed them towards the exit. “Come with me. I’ll take you to your new home for the next few days. Oh, and welcome to California!”

* * *

 _The Surfrider Hotel_ sat by the coastline of Malibu itself, a bright, white modern beach house that faced the famous Surfrider beach.

Even after the minibus-ride, Shawn was doing most of the talking with George, as if they had been friends for years, while the rest were at awe at the exquisiteness of this new part of the world. It was nothing compared to the grey, washed-up city that was Des Moines. But instead, it thrived with colours and smells. The scent of warm sands, salty and blossoming, the hushes of the sea beyond them a constant calm hissing, as natural as breathing.

“This is where you’ll be staying, courtesy of Roadrunner.” George beamed, gathering several sets of keys for the band members and gave them to Shawn. “You guys can decide on who stays with who, we couldn’t get single rooms for everyone, but I’m sure you’ll be fine. Some of you have brought your girlfriends and such,” He grinned, looking at Jim and Corey.

Sallie and Corey glanced at one another at the comment, but promptly dismissed it. It wasn’t the first time someone has mistaken them for a couple.

“You guys get settled in,” Shawn announced, dishing out the keys amongst his bandmates. “I’ll be going to Roadrunner with George to set plans. I’ve got a lot to work on,”

“Oh, are you sure, Mr. Clown?” George piped up, blinking in surprise. “Don’t you want to settle down first?”

The Clown snorted, waving a hand at George.

“Nah, I’m fucking ready for this!” The Clown grinned, facing Mick. “Big dude, you’re in charge of the kids!”

Mick grunted with a roll of his eyes, but nodding, he waved his hands.

“C’mon, children,” He joked, turning and was already making his way to his new room, taking Barbie’s hand and dragged her with an intense pace.

“Looks like Mick’s got plans,” Chris grinned lewdly, sensing something dirty between the couple.

“We’ll catch you guys later!” Shawn waved, walking back to the minibus with George, patting his back and howling with laughter.

Together, the friends made their ways to their rooms, discussing amongst one another which rooms they should take. Corey insisted in being alone, though when Chris mocked him for being ‘a loner’, Corey wanted to suddenly break his fucking neck-

_Shit, where did that come from…?_

“Hey Sal, you can chill in my room.” Chris said, facing the little Brit. “Fat-head wants to be alone.”

Sallie did the best to hide her disappointment with Corey’s choice, but she accepted it bitterly.

“I mean, if you don’t mind.” Sallie murmured. She saw Corey listening, but glanced away when she saw him tucking his hand in his pocket and was already storming up the white, wooden stairs to the upper levels. Jim and Liv followed, their room beside Shawn’s and Sid’s.

Chris opened the door to their new apartment, and he practically snatched Sallie into the room.

“Shit, Sal! Look at this place!” Chris cried out, tossing his bag onto the floor and closed the door with his foot. Sallie had to admit, it was stunning. The majority of the room was coastal-white, wooden features and driftwood decorated the walls, a four-posted bed in the main room, complimented with its matching furniture. What caught Sallie’s attention was the balcony. She approached it promptly, pulling the glass door open and stepped out, feeling the welcoming heat of the sun.

And then, the view…

“Fucking hell!” Sallie gasped, eyes wide at the shimmering carpet of the ocean before her, forever ongoing, the horizon endless. The white-sand beach hugged the fringe of the ocean. “It’s like something from the fucking movies, Chris.” Sallie added, resting her arms on the balcony and looking around. The tall percussionist stood beside her, smiling and taking a deep breath.

“I just can’t fucking believe we’re here,” Chris sighed, leaning on the balcony with Sallie. “Like…fuck…I thought I’d never leave Des Moines, like, _ever_ ,”

“I have forgotten how stunning California is…” Sallie murmured.

They heard a set of doors opening beside them. Sallie and Chris turned to see that Barbie’s and Mick’s apartment was next door. Barbie hurried out, grabbing the balcony and practically squealed.

“Mick! This is beautiful!” She piped up, turning and seeing Chris and Sallie watching her. She giggled and waved happily, but suddenly Mick stormed past the balcony door, bending down and scooping the small woman, who squealed in delight as he heaved her over his shoulder.

“Back inside, woman. We’re gonna bless the bed!” Mick boomed, delighting his new girlfriend as he took her back inside, slamming the doors.

Sallie chuckled, looking back at Chris.

“So, I take it they finally did it?” Sallie asked. Chris nodded, chuckling softly.

“Yeah, it was Barbie that actually asked that dickhead out,” Chris grinned, straightening up from the balcony. “About fucking time too. Those two have been making goo-goo eyes for ages.”

“Oh, I know.” Sallie made her way back inside of the apartment, shaking her head with a small, amused smile. “Glad they’re official finally…”

Chris watched her leave, his brows furrowing slightly. He sighed, knowing what was running through Sallie’s head. Looking up, he saw that just a few blocks down, he saw Corey standing on his balcony, a cigarette pushed against his lips, smoking slowly as he watched beyond the ocean ahead.

The percussionist frowned, but deciding to just take care of his friend, he returned back inside, closing the door.

* * *

“Keep stirring, Rose!” Sallie commanded, holding a large piece of milk chocolate above the pan of hot milk. Rose glared at Sallie.

“I’m stirring as much as I can, bro!”

“Good!” Sallie grinned, plopping the piece of chocolate into the hot milk. “Keep stirring, more is coming.”

“Fuck sake, we’ll be here all night!” Mick thundered from behind, looming over Sallie and Rose. With both of his huge hands, he scooped the large amount of chocolate pieces that Sallie had delicately broke up, and dropped them aggressively into the pan, making Rose cry out at the splatters of milk. “Don’t stop until I say so!” Mick laughed, watching as Rose panicked, the whisk slightly bending against the large amount of heavy chocolate.

“ _Shiiiiit,_ bro! I can’t stir!”

“You’re a shit-stirrer then, Rose.”

Sallie laughed suddenly at that comment.

“This hot chocolate better be worth it!” Paul called out from where he sat, watching as Rose, Sallie and Mick struggled in the small, pristine white kitchen.

All of the friends had gathered in Jim’s and Liv’s room, considering it was the biggest out of them all, being a double apartment. Now, the sun was setting behind the ocean, a sickly orange twilight in the sky, settling down for the night. Despite knowing they had a busy day ahead of them tomorrow, Joey insisted in the friends to gather together and spend the evening relaxing and having fun. Shawn, Sid and Craig were sitting on the loungers outside on the balcony, smoking. Liv had specifically ordered all smokers to smoke outside, which the guys respected. Though Sid had sometimes forgotten this rule and entered inside with a cigarette between his lips.

Liv had never grabbed Sid by the ear and toss him back to the balcony so quickly in her life. It was all banter, of course, with Shawn now teasingly edging inside of the room with all three cigarettes in his mouth.

Sallie gradually backed away, seeing how Mick took control of the hot chocolate, and smirking, she stepped back into the middle.

Corey wasn’t here. He said he was going for a shower, and Sallie had expected him to finish by now.

_Maybe…just maybe…_

Sallie turned to Paul.

“I’m going to catch a Corey, I’ll be back.” She informed, and Paul nodded, waving his hand.

“Sure thing,”

Sallie snuck outside, hearing the rowdy laughs from her friends within, and felt so warm to hear such joy. There wasn’t enough of it in the world and hearing the banter and laughs between her friends always reminded her that life was better with them.

She knew which room Corey was in, and so she walked up the steps at the side of the building, walking along the balcony that hugged the building, and towards Corey’s apartment. She knocked her knuckles onto it and waited. Crickets were chirping, something she had hasn’t heard of in a very, very long time. It reminded her of home.

Nothing.

Sallie knocked on the door harder.

“Corey?” Already, a swelling of panic came through her head, running down her throat like honey, unable to breathe properly. There was no reply. “Corey.” Sallie whined again, pressing her ear against the door and-

Screaming.

“ _Corey!_ ” She squeaked, snatching the door handle and forced the door open. A lamp was on the floor, broken, the sofa destroyed as if someone had grabbed the cushions in a blinded rage and threw them around. But Sallie’s mind was reeling sharply, the screams-

They were coming from the bathroom, and Sallie abruptly cut her attention towards it, becoming so intense, so hyper-focused. The screaming, they were-

“ ** _FUUUUUUCCCK!_** ”

Corey.

Instantly, Sallie threw herself against the bathroom door, slamming her fists onto it. Something so animalistic, so haunting about his wails. The screaming, the crying-

Already, tears of terror sprung from Sallie’s eyes.

“Corey! COREY, _LET ME IN_!” Sallie squealed, her hand grabbing the door-handle and twisted it several times. Locked.

Slumped in the empty bathtub, the pristine white marble was stained with red.

Corey screamed again, running a piece of broken glass across his wrist, red liquid spewing from the open, gaping wound. Luckily, it wasn’t deep enough to kill him, but the cuts on his thighs were dangerous, seeing the muscle throbbing in agony.

Blood was everywhere.

Painted on the tub, on his legs and chest, the walls…

… _everywhere_.

“ ** _FUCK YOU! LEAVE ME ALONE!_** ” Came the monstrous scream, his cry laced with the guttural cry of hurting, choking on his own saliva as he coughed, tears running down his face. “ ** _LET ME DIE! DIIIIIIEE!_** ” He unleashed another animalistic scream, the glass cutting into his palm and fingers. He never stopped screaming, letting Sallie know he was definitely still alive.

The glass shard began to dig into his arm, digging…digging…as if he were fishing for something.

Sallie didn’t reply, her own instincts seizing all words. No words will stop him. She had to get inside. The urgency to enter inside growing so strongly that she had nothing in her mind, a blinding whiteness.

_OPEN THE DOOR_

_OPEN THE DOOR_

_OPEN THE DOOR_

The very instinctive thought came out in pulses, throbbing inside her conscious as much as her own heartrate, becoming impossible to ignore.

A visceral shriek left Sallie in frustration, lifting her boot and with all of her strength, she kicked the door. It shook, but didn’t give in. Screaming again, she kicked harder, and harder.

Nothing else mattered but Corey.

“ ** _GO AWAY! GO AWAAAY!_** ” Corey squealed, sobbing. Sallie didn’t register what he said. She just kicked, and kicked, and kicked, and kicked, and kicked-

A body stood beside her rapidly, a black blur, and hands grabbed onto her shoulders, trying to pull her away from the door-

_No._

Sallie snatched herself from the hands, feeling them grappling onto her shoulders desperately. More hands grabbed her arms. Another held around her waist, and the invisible force was becoming stronger, and stronger-

All of her strength burst abruptly, breaking free from the arms, and thrusting her shoulder hard into the door, the wooden pane shook against the force.

Panting.

Heavy panting and whimpering.

Sallie threw herself against the door. Shoulder crippling. She bashed her shoulder into the door, her body on fire, burning, killing-

Someone touched her, and she screamed. She didn’t know what words came out. Probably offensive.

Brown eyes looked away, hurt.

A strand of black and red hair, small fingers reaching for her fac-

Another scream. Another force to push the door, and, at last, the wooden pane of the bathroom door caved in.

Sallie pushed herself into the hole, scrambling her arm at the other side to unlock the door, panicking. Her eye, bloodshot, stared through the opening.

Corey’s eyes mirrored her hurt. If anyone else saw Corey in this state, they would have believed he was possessed by a demon. He didn’t fight back, only watched his friend destroy the door and opening it in a spur of horrible, sickeningly panic.

Cold reptilian eyes watched her demise.

The door blurred before Sallie. Her ankle and knee were in agony. Her shoulder ached, her nails bleeding.

Sallie saw the amount of red on the scene. So much red…

Enough to push her.

Enough to trigger overdrive.

The first thing she did was to hurry to Corey, snatching the glass from his hand, cutting her own palms in an attempt to seize all cutting.

 ** _“ENOUGH! ENOUGH!_** ”

Corey allowed his best friend to pull him out of the bathtub. He was naked, the peering eyes of his friends huddling by the door as if he was a performance actor. None of them really knew what to do.

But Mick ducked under the door and slowly approached Sallie, knowing it would be dangerous to even touch her when she was this distress. He was wary of the glass shard she held in her hand, crimson ribbons running down between her fingers.

Corey was now growling, hissing, letting out pained rasping cries. The sound of a man in absolute discomfort. Not due to the physical pain, but by emotional and mental agony. He wanted to die, so much.

“ ** _Fuuuuucccck!_** ” Corey growled through clenched teeth, breathing heavily, choking on tears and spit as Sallie dragged him onto the floor away from the glass.

Forcing him onto the floor, Sallie removed her shirt, her mind gone now, and promptly began to wrap her shirt around the cut thighs, stopping the bleeding. Blood kept going. Corey was beginning to thrash beneath her when he realised she was trying to save him. He swung and swiped a fist at Sallie, clipping her cheek, but to her surprise, she felt the force, and not the pain.

Mick dropped beside Sallie, his huge hands holding Corey down, the vocalist now thrashing and screaming as if a demon was being exorcized from his body. Corey turned and spat blood at Mick, making the guitarist flinch, but he said nothing. He held Corey down as Sallie began to rip along the side of her jeans, tearing the denim roughly and tied it around his palms and wrists.

_STOP THE BLEEDING_

_STOP THE BLEEDING_

She was now aware that Mick was with her, recognising only his eyes, and knew he was there to help and to not stop her. She was exhausted now, _beyond_ exhausted. She could feel it inside, her body crumbling as the adrenaline rush began to simmer away, serving its purpose and leaving her cold.

Sallie looked down at Corey, staring in mute-horror at the state he was in. His eyes held a strange gaze, glassy and cold, almost…

_No, say it isn’t so…_

Whimpering, Sallie lowered herself down onto him and pressed her face into his stomach, using her small form to put pressure on the cuts, her small fingers squeezing his wrists with the bloody rags of denim, her own blood reaching down her elbow and touching her body and legs.

Shaking. Shaking so uncontrollably.

And she wept hard, trembling.

Corey laid there, breathing erratically, letting her press herself against him. His mind was gone right now, feeling nothing. Nothing at all. His body was numb and completely empty of any emotions. His eyes dinted and dilated. Breathing staggered, his heart was pounding in his chest so hard, and yet he wasn’t there anymore. He was checked out mentally.

The small, soft pained noises were the only signs of life he was emitting right now.

Blood continued to bleed from Sallie’s palm, and Sallie knew very well that she was still clutching onto the shard of glass _so_ terribly hard. But she focused on the pain in her palm right now instead of what she was witnessing…

It helped.

She wanted to just black out right there and then, to destroy this disaster of a situation she found herself in, but her mind was cruel, and she was conscious the entire night…


	53. Paul Bearer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AUTHOR'S NOTES:-  
> \+ As some of you may know, I have my own Instagram account. Now, I have made a side account purely dedicated for this Fanfiction. So feel free to follow it for fanart, artwork, chapter updates, memes and such!
> 
> +++MAIN SLIPKNOT ACCOUNT: https://www.instagram.com/project_iowa666/ +++  
> +++ IOWA, THE FANFICTION ACCOUNT: https://www.instagram.com/iowa_fanfiction/ +++
> 
> CHAPTER NOTES:-  
> \+ Yes, Paul Bearer. As in the Undertaker's manager from WWE. I loved this guy when I watched/played it, and enjoyed his character so much. I'm not too sure why I was intrigued in making him as Slipknot's manager, but he seemed to have charmed his way back and I enjoyed the concept of it. So I wanted to play my own take on it. Don't mind me! <3

Sallie’s eyes were aching. They stung with such an unspoken agony. Drained from life, punished and hollow.

Five hours and counting.

Since that incident. What was supposed to be a lovely, warm evening with friends became a troublesome scene from a paramedic TV show…

Red still stained the sink, towels had been discarded and the majority of the blood was gone. The lamp was placed back, the bulb now completely removed. The apartment was dark.

Blood still blemished Sallie’s hands. Slumped in the armchair like a dying person, Sallie stared blankly at Corey, his sleeping form under the safety of the blanket. The blood loss had caused him to fall unconscious eventually, now settled into a restless sleep.

Sallie refused to leave the room, refused to leave Corey alone. Her belongings were returned by Chris later that evening, knowing she would much rather stay with Corey to protect him.

She stared at her best friend vacantly, trying to read a blank page that was Corey Taylor.

_A cry for help._

_He knew I could have fucking helped him._

_Yeah, but people find it hard to directly ask for help…_

_No fucking excuse!_

A moment of silence.

_How do you feel about him?_

Sallie stared coldly.

_I don’t know…nothing is registering right now._

_You’re still in shock._

_Do I hate him?_

_No, of course not. You hate what he has become…_

Sallie shut her eyes tightly, biting back tears of regret.

_Stand up._

And she did.

_I know you want to comfort him. Kiss him._

_I’m too scared to touch him…_

_Why?_

_I…don’t know…_

_You think you might break him?_

Sallie took a step towards the bed, hesitated, and then she turned away.

_Outside._

And she did. Turning onto her boots, Sallie walked to the balcony, opening the door and rested her arms on the railing, staring emotionlessly at the ocean.

_Can you feel it?_

_Feel what?_

_The air…_

Sallie frowned softly. No, no she couldn’t. Her body was still on hyper-drive, and while she wasn’t as invincible as she felt when the adrenaline came to her, she still felt the tremors that never left her. They always grew from her feet, upwards.

_Everything feels so numb. Sleep._

_No. No, I refuse to sleep._

_But you’re exhausted._

_I sleep and Corey fucking dies._

That seemed to shut her thoughts, leaving Sallie suddenly cold. Hugging herself, she watched the rippling reflection of the moon on the watery surface.

Shaking, her hands gripped harder into her arms, the pain from her cut aching again beneath the bandage Mick had made for her. The pain reminded her of its origins.

And she began to cry again.

Sobbing softly, Sallie tried to keep her whimpers silent, to make sure no one on earth could hear her cries of help but herself.

_Even you don’t want to ask for help…_

_I do…and yet the only person I wanna ask help for…_

_…is dead._

“God, I miss you, Mum…” Sallie heaved under her breath, shutting her eyes tightly to stop the tears from falling. But it did little good. She sniffed, and that was when she felt the air at last.

She was vaguely aware that someone was standing behind her now, arms appearing at both sides of her waist and hugged her from behind, drawing her into a deep embrace. She noted the messy bandages that coiled around the arms, stained with watercolours of crimson.

Rough dreadlocks touched her cheek and neck. A whiff of latex. An intense stench of blood.

IOWA stood behind Sallie, resting his chin on her shoulder as they watched the moonlit ocean. The waves crashed gently onto the beach, caring hushes in the night.

“I’ve missed you,” IOWA cooed lovingly, and Sallie found herself to feel a bit irritated by that comment, and how he said it. It was as if Corey was going to act as if nothing has fucking happened. Even when she looked at his wrists and forearms to see the bandaged and deep, red lines carved in his flesh remaining there, and knew it was him.

Sallie kept her eyes closed, almost too frightened in seeing IOWA.

When she didn’t reply, or even touch him back, she felt IOWA leaning next to her, looking at her face and seeing her close up. “Why aren’t you worshipping me? You’re normally _very_ excited when you see me.”

“I’m very angry at you,” Sallie managed to say through clenched teeth. IOWA frowned beneath his mask.

“Angry at _me?_ What did I do?”

“You _know_ what you’ve done…” Reaching down, Sallie unclasped IOWA’s hands and pulled his arms off her, stepping away from him, keeping her distance.

IOWA didn’t move. The bandaged were wrapped around his wrists and thighs, dressed in simple shorts for the evening. The masked man watched Sallie for a time.

“Oh, you’re pissed at Corey.”

“Yes, I’m pissed at _you_ , Corey.” Sallie grilled, turning away and storming back inside the apartment. IOWA followed her fluidly, like a vampire stalking its pray, and he closed the balcony doors behind him delicately. “Why did you fucking do that?” He heard his fuming Eve say.

Almost uncaringly, IOWA shrugged, watching his critical darling pace around.

“I’m not the one you should be asking. It’s fucking Corey.”

Sallie halted, snapping a sharp glare at the masked man. And sarcasm leaked out of her lips.

“Oh…that’s right… hide behind a fucking mask. Because that makes _all_ problems go away…” She marched back to the armchair, sitting down in it heavily and pointed at the bed. “Go to sleep, asshole.”

IOWA bit his lip at the tone of her voice, tilting his head to the side.

“But my love, my sweetheart, can’t we fuck?” He groped his cock beneath his shorts. “I haven’t had a good fuck since-”

Sallie slammed both of her fists onto the coffee table before her, and for the first time, IOWA jolted in horror.

“Sleep! _NOW!_ ” Sallie screamed, her eyes snapping back at IOWA, full of disgust, the tears no longer there, and the raw hatred was churning back.

A heavy silence pressed between them, pushing them away from one another. Sallie’s hard stare was unmoved, and IOWA could only watch her for a long moment.

Then, IOWA began to back away, slowly retreating towards the bed. Wordlessly, he glared at Sallie through the black voids of his eyes before pulling the bedsheets over him, sitting on the mattress and hurled the blanket over him, not wanting to see his little Eve right now.

She was terrible when she was angry.

That was the first time his Eve had rejected him, and it was crushing…painstakingly _hurtful…_

Even though she could feel IOWA fuming beneath the blanket, he was gone right now. Out of sight, out of mind.

And Sallie rested in the armchair, staring at the moon outside now.

Sallie’s eyes were still aching. They stung with such an unspoken agony. Drained from life, punished and hollow.

Five hours and counting…now six hours…

* * *

Liv hushed Rose softly as Barbie closed the door behind her soundlessly.

The three of them assembled around the armchair were Sallie slumped. There was such a terrible depression on her face, her body limp and dejected, like she had died in the chair itself.

Thankfully, her body had just barely made her unconscious, sending her in a deep sleep to try and rest the trauma away. It vaguely helped, but at least it granted Sallie some time to not be aware or constantly punished by the situation.

“I’ve never seen her like this before…” Barbie mewed silently, looking up at Rose and Liv in woe. Even Rose had a pang of sorrow in her features, the distress looking almost comical on someone who seemed to be nothing but eccentric.

The band had left early this morning, making their way to Roadrunner to start on their new album, as well as working on their self-titled album. Allowing _Slipknot_ to work on their project, the girls agreed to stay at the beach apartments to keep Sallie company. Keeping her away from Corey was Shawn’s idea too, knowing how she would torture herself in keeping an eye on him, and as much as Shawn hated to admit it, it would distract their performances.

“Should we just let her sleep?” Liv asked silently, glancing at her friends for support.

“She’s probably exhausted.” Barbie nodded, and Rose sighed deeply.

“I doubt she slept at all, bro.” Rose studied Sallie for a time, and she felt chilled by the sight of it. Sallie was breathing deeply, her entire body melted and collapsed in the armchair. She wanted to readjust Sallie’s head so that her neck didn’t ache from the awkward position, but she was too terrified in disturbing her.

“I know, we’ll let her sleep right now.” Liv suggested, her eyes finding the small notepad on the desk. “We’ll write a note for her when she wakes up. Let her have her rest.”

Barbie and Rose nodded in acknowledgment.

“Don’t leave me, please…”

Immediately, the three women spun around to hear the voice coming from Sallie, and to their horrible dismay, Sallie was awake. And crying.

“It wasn’t a dream, was it?” Sallie choked, her fingers pinching the bridge of her nose, shutting her eyes tightly and tried to compose herself, but even she felt no motivation to do such a thing. “I can still smell blood…”

“Oh, Sallie…” Liv cooed sympathetically, hurrying over to the weeping Brit and instantly scooped her up in her arms, hugging her against her shoulder. “It’s okay, it’s okay…” She hushed calmly, her hand brushing Sallie’s hair, feeling her friend sobbing against her shoulder.

Deep breaths, Sallie tried to calm her raging body down, sucking in air abruptly and exhaling them from her clenched teeth. It only made Liv hold her harder.

Beyond them, Barbie and Rose watched the distressing display in mute-sorrow.

“I’ll make some coffee…” Rose said, her voice almost inaudible under the grief-stricken weeps from Sallie.

* * *

Head down, Corey stared blankly at the floor. He was tucked behind Mick and Jim, who sat closer to the desk of their new manager.

 _Roadrunner_ sat in the centre of California, a proud building that emulated such a sense of pride in its work. It was the Hollywood for the music industry. In the black and red office, George stepped before each member of the band, holding a tray of freshly made coffee, treating the members of the small city band like kings.

Corey reluctantly took it, not even giving George eye-contact. The fresh cuts beneath his long, black sleeves were still stinging, almost as if to remind him what he had done, and how Sallie must be feeling-

He tried to block the thought of Sallie, knowing it would make him either furious or depressed. He wanted to think of her cute face and yet he could only remember the look of betrayed panic in those stunning eyes. The last thing he saw of Sallie…and it tattooed in his mind.

The vocalist gradually took another shaky drag of his cigarette. This was the fifth one in the space of an hour, chain-smoking.

Sat before the band was Paul Bearer.

Ironically, just as his namesake, he seemed to have looked more of a funeral director than a manager for a rock band. His face was blanch, mostly painted eerily white with striking black hair, sharply contrasting against his pale flesh. He was a rather large, small man, with a very long face, double-chinned and a perfect, small black moustache tucked between his small nose and puckered upper-lip. Round, wide eyes with small pupils, and harshly constructed black eyebrows that arched above his eyes.

His appearance reminded them of something from _The Addams Family_ , but none of them dare ask about his appearance. Joey found it rather intriguing. It was like having a more mature goth before them, and he admired it.

Paul Bearer clapped his hands and rubbed them together like a scheming villain, his bulging eyes observing the fresh meat before him. The reward plaques that hung around him, brimmed with golds and silvers, showed that he was incredibly successful within the music world, and Jim was confident that they were in good hands…even though Paul Bearer was looking rather…unusual.

Chris’ eyes focused on the golden urn that sat proudly behind Paul Bearer.

_I wonder what the fuck is in that thing…_

“My dear _Slipknot_!” Paul Bearer burst out unexpectedly, making all of the members jolt at the sudden shriek. “How I am _honoured_ to have you all here today, in my own office!” His voice was melodramatic.

Corey’s head remained bowed, but he listened. Vaguely.

All he wanted to do was hold Sallie and tell her that he was okay. But he knew he was lying. And she knew it too…

“To think you were just a small group of friends in a small place like Iowa!” Paul Bearer placed both hands onto the table, leaning forward with huge eyes and took in the detail of all of them, one by one. “When I heard such good things about you, I _knew_ I needed to get my hands on you guys! And here we are! Ha-ha!” Paul Bearer threw himself back into his chair, the small desk chair whined under his large weight. “Now, since you’re all here, I would like to mention that you are in very, _very_ good hands.”

George stood at the corner of the office, grinning widely as his father spoke to the rock band, excitement swelling in his chest. This was certainly going to be an interesting project for his father, as well as his first experience with working so close to a band. His passion to work with a rock band was coming true.

His father tapped a chubby hand on the desk. “I’m interested,” Paul Bearer continued, his lips at a constant, comical cock. “Why the masks?”

Corey was thankful that Joey spoke for them.

“We’re about the music. It’s not about our faces, or where we’ve come from. The _music_ is the main focus, and that’s why we wear masks. It’s to hide us and let the music be the main attraction.”

“Ho! That is extraordinary!” Paul Bearer piped up. “I completely agree too, and this is why you have caught my attention. I believe music should be what it is. _Music_. An escape from reality, a stress-reliever, a _saviour!_ ” He frowned, waving his hand madly. “Not this bullshit about making money just for rapping about some crap about women and drugs. That’s why I love the rock and heavy metal sides of things!” He smiled yet again, his eyes holding Shawn for a moment, and the Clown felt it. “The masks are staying, and so are those jumpsuits. I _love_ the style, so much! It terrifies people and I _love_ it!” The manager paused for a moment, blinking a couple of times, and then looked amongst the men frantically. “Which one of you is Corey? The singer, I presume.”

All of the band members turned to look at Corey, who wasn’t paying attention at this point. His hand gripped onto his forearm, feeling the sliced flesh stitching itself slowly beneath the rough cotton of his sleeves.

“Corey.” Jim hissed, alerting the vocalist suddenly. Corey sat up promptly, eyes wide and noticing that everyone was staring at him, he began to shake hard.

“Uh…uh, yes?”

“You’re the singer, right?” Paul Bearer asked, his voice insistent. And Corey nodded mutely. “Excellent! So, I was wondering if you’re up for singing today.” Paul Bearer looked at all of the members. “I want to see how you guys perform! You guys can perform today, right?”

“O-Oh yes!” Mick boomed, sitting up straight, protecting the vulnerability he sensed from Corey. “I’m sure the boys won’t mind too!”

“Sure! I’m hype for today!” Shawn grinned, tapping his feet happily from where he sat.

“I can go, I guess” Joey piped up, nodding frantically.

Corey watched his brothers with grey eyes. It was as if his brothers sensed how he was feeling, and he was certainly up for singing, but he can’t stand the idea of singing something so tame, so pathetic-

“I have a request.”

The voice of Corey caught everyone’s attention, and Paul Bearer blinked a few times, exaggerated, his lips forever pushed up hilariously.

“Yes, Mr. Taylor?”

When the rest of his band looked at him again, Corey took a long, shuddering breath.

“I wanna…I wanna sing.”

“Of course, you can-!”

“But…” Corey held a shaky finger. “I want to sing _Iowa_.”

No one but Shawn understood his request, and the Clown’s jaw dropped.

“Corey, you sure dude?”

“Shawn, I _need_ this…” Corey said tersely. “Let me have this, please…”

“I thought you wanted Sal to watch-”

“She can’t watch this.” Came the stern reply. “She _isn’t allowed_ to watch me sing this…please…”

_No…no, my Little Meep would be destroyed by this song…it’s for HER…our love song for her…_

Shawn stared at Corey with disbelief, and he looked away, saying nothing. It didn’t matter what he’d say, Corey’s words were final…


	54. Old Friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains:-  
> \+ Self-harming, a lots of blood.

Cooped up inside of the apartments wasn’t a good idea for Sallie.

Trying to entertain her was like entertaining a dying soul. Even with a cup of coffee in hand, taking large, singular gulps, Sallie paced around as if she was expecting to hear some news. Barbie had watched her pull her phone out several times just to see if she had missed a message.

Nothing from anyone.

Barbie hated it. She hated how Sallie was in a constant warp of distress, trying to figure out something to distract her with. And when Liv mentioned about a café nearby that Jim discovered, they all agreed it was best for her to get out of the apartment for a bit.

The scent of blood was still here…

They decided to walk down to the café. It didn’t take them too long, with the everlasting sun basking them blissfully with warmth.

Rose complained softly about how she should have packed some shorts for this trip. California was nothing like Des Moines. And even with all of this beauty around them, the shocking whites of driftwood, the colours of exotic palm trees, Sallie was still numb.

She so desperately wanted to enjoy it, but the constant sight of red was reminding her…

Always reminding her…

The look of Corey when he turned to her…

_What did I do wrong? Where did I go wrong?_

Sallie pulled her phone out. No text.

She wanted to text Corey, but her instincts held her back and finally won. It would be too awkward. Besides, texting him would be the coward’s way of approaching him after such an incident. She would rather see his face. And so, she gradually stuffed her phone back in her pocket.

 _Marmalade Café_. Liv thought the name was adorable, and the inside of it was just as cute. The café was nestled between a line of buildings, like a drop-off station for exhausted drivers on their long travels. The café focused on Californian cuisine, so all of the food that was offered to them were either alien or just different. Rose eagerly sat by the table with the menu and stared at all of the pancake options, with Liv sitting beside her. Barbie and Sallie sat opposite to them, resting there from their heated walk. Despite it being only a short walk, the blistering sun was too overpowering for the Des Moines residents.

“Gah, I swear if I get sunburnt!” Liv chuckled, scratching her nails into her arm, feeling the heat building up there. Her red hair and fair skin made her the ultimate target for the sun. “Jim took the sun-cream.”

“I had some if you needed any,” Barbie offered kindly, her azure eyes seemingly brighter in the sunny light.

“ _Actual_ sun-cream, or Mick’s man-juice?” Rose sniggered, being rewarded with a bashful stare from Barbie. Liv snorted.

“H-Hey! Rose, don’t be dirty. Not in public!”

Chuckling at her dirtiness, Rose passed the menu to the mute Brit, who took it and stared at the food.

_None of these intrigues me…_

_Everything always tasted better with Corey…_

“So, you guys wanna try something tonight?” Barbie asked eventually, noting the silence Sallie was emitting.

“I wanna see the beach,” Liv smiled, planting both elbows on the table and leaned on them. “Ohh, a romantic walk on the beach…” She added dreamily.

“Oh, with Sid and Chris casually being dicks in the distance!” Rose grinned.

The conversation didn’t get through Sallie. She didn’t know what she had planned tonight…she was almost too frightened to plan anything. Just sit back and watch what happens. The unexpected was about to happen when she was having fun, it always did.

When the waiter arrived, their orders was made. Liv was kind enough to offer payment for all orders, wanting to treat her friends. And when she looked back at Sallie, seeing the Brit leaning back into her seat like a depressed wallflower, her smile faltered slightly.

“Hey Sal,”

“Yeah?” Sallie’s eyes looked up. Barbie and Rose faced Sallie, giving her supportive smiles.

“You okay?”

Noting the pause, and how her eye squinted, they knew she was trying to break open something inside of her.

“I’m getting there…” Sallie replied eventually, giving a tired smile. “Just…I’m sorry for this…I just don’t want to be near anyone right now,”

“Shh, it’s okay.” Barbie commented softly, her fingers fidgeting with her cat necklace, its silver glistening in the hot beams.

“I just…don’t know what I’m doing wrong.” Sallie spoke again, her voice gaining strength. “It feels like I’m doing something wrong. He needs to ask for help and not do this stupid shit. But, even then, I don’t know if what I am doing is helping him…is it just encouraging him more because he has me as a safety net? Just…” She waved her hand, dismissing her word-vomit. “Never mind… I’m not making sense.”

“No, Sal. You _are_ making sense.” Liv insisted. “Jim told me that Corey…well, he’s a complicated man.”

“I figured.” Sallie sighed. Her head rested in her hands, rubbing the tiredness there that never seemed to leave her. “But for him to fucking butcher himself like that…just _why?_ ”

The insistent, disheartened tone hit her friends hard. The woes of a woman who adored a complicated man. And none of them didn’t have the answer for her. They all knew that.

“Just stay strong,” Barbie said eventually, rubbing her hand on Sallie’s shoulder. “He needs you more than ever.”

_But what if this is doing me more damage than helping?_

_What if that cunt was right?_

_The day Sam’s words are correct is the day I fucking die…_

Liv looked up to see new customers coming through the door. A collection of policemen. Nothing new. Her attention turned back to her distressed friend.

“Maybe I can give Jim a call? See if we can go and see them, or maybe even try something tonight.”

_Do I even want to see Corey?_

_You do, but-_

_I’m scared of looking at him…_

“Hmm…” Indecisive in what to do, Sallie could only vaguely answer. “I just don’t know whether to leave Corey alone or fucking…”

“Smother him with kisses?”

“Choke him.”

Barbie blinked, leaning back in her seat.

“Oh…” She replied, taken back.

“Oh my fucking god!” The exclamation caught the attention of everyone. Sallie rolled her eyes in irritation, turning around in her seat to see that the voice came from one of the Malibu’s police officers, and he was approaching _them._

_Friend of Barbie, maybe, or-_

_WAIT!_

Sallie stood up abruptly, her chair toppling backwards from the sudden movement.

The face she stared back was unmistakable, a familiar friendly gaze that used to tell her that everything was okay. Something about it just brought back many fond memories. The eyes, that nose, the ears, the devil-may-care smile. A chiselled jawline, bright eyes and a handsome smirk, black hair perfectly pulled back with gel and a comb. Despite his uniform, he was so laid-back.

“Hey, Sal! I’ve found you!”

Immediately, Sallie lunged at the handsome police officer, her arms around his neck and she pulled him into a tight hug.

“ _Jamie!_ ” Sallie cried out, burying her face into his shoulder, squeezing her arms tightly around him, just like the last time they were together. When Sallie left California for Des Moines…

Barbie, Liv and Rose exchanged glances at one another, but they smiled in realization that this must have been an old friend of Sallie’s. They knew that she had lived in California years ago, and perhaps seeing an old face would help her.

Jamie clutched onto Sallie hard, his own face pushed into her hair, embracing his old friend. He never thought he would find her after she left California, so when he heard her voice he assumed he was mistaking her for someone else. But he saw those boots and long hair, and knew he was right.

* * *

“You sure you wanna do this, dude?”

“I’m certain.” Even as Corey said this, he felt himself so incredibly defeated. “If I don’t do it now, I’ll never be able to do it again…”

“Didn’t you say this was your song for Sallie?”

Corey said nothing, turning his eyes away from Shawn. He felt an overwhelming sense of shame the moment he mentioned her name. It crippled him how he left her, in the state that she was…

He wasn’t in an any better position, but he felt as though he had let Sallie down. No doubt she’s in some small café chatting up with a handsome man that could probably love her better than him…

Corey swallowed hard.

“C’mon, my beautiful men!” The chirpy voice of Paul Bearer announced, stabbing through Corey’s conscious like a hot knife in butter, and it hurt him. “Let’s record some good music!”

Corey’s eyes snapped back at Shawn, an icy menace in them.

“Tell Bearer that I want to do this _my_ way.”

“Your way…or _IOWA’s_ way?”

Corey stared coldly at his brother for a time, and lowly, he replied:

“IOWA’s way…”

Shawn’s eyes were level with Corey. This was serious.

Promptly, Shawn nodded his head to the recording studio, indicating that Corey should begin his role.

IOWA…Shawn was aware of this persona his frontman had created. And Shawn had to admit, he fucking adored him. He loved how batshit crazy he was, how insane and erratic he was on stage. And sometimes when Shawn spoke to Corey, IOWA spoke. It was like talking to a duplicate of Corey, but all of his dark and terrible qualities came out so harshly.

And it didn’t take a genius to know that IOWA had met Sallie…

Shawn watched as Corey picked his IOWA mask from where it sat on the desk, pulling it over his head, and Shawn knew that Corey was sitting back now, watching regrettably as IOWA took the stage.

_This is a love song for my Eve…_

Paul Bearer was suddenly beside Shawn, his chubby hands clapping eagerly.

“Ohh! I know this is going to be great!” Paul Bearer chimed, looking at Shawn. “Good thing you guys recorded this song this morning! I cannot wait to see Corey perform.”

“ _Iowa_ is an intense song…” Shawn said, his voice suddenly dark. His eyes never left IOWA as he locked himself in the recording studio. “And IOWA is…intense…”

Paul Bearer didn’t seem to understand what Shawn was referring to. But his attention shifted fully back onto IOWA as the vocalist turned back towards the door, as if to leave.

Paul Bearer’s eyes widened.

“W-Wait…”

IOWA unlocked the door, slowly lifting his face to Shawn, his eyes greyish-blue.

“Clown…my treasures…”

“Treasures?” Paul Bearer questioned, looking at Shawn for answers. But the Clown said nothing to their manager. He only held IOWA’s cold gaze steadily, simply nodding and turned to the desk, yanking a small, black bag and held it to IOWA.

IOWA snatched it from him, but Shawn didn’t bite at it. He had no idea what was inside of it, but Corey was insistent in taking it with him. Apparently, it was going to help the emotion for the song.

The masked male locked himself up in the recording studio, and hesitated.

Just as requested, he specially asked for Shawn to be the only one to witness him. He would have requested a private recording studio, but it was denied, and promptly. So Shawn and Paul Bearer were only allowed to witness this dangerous act. The lights were dim for now, allowing IOWA to restore the darkness he needed.

Corey knew his heart wasn’t entirely in it, but IOWA persistent, and Corey just let him roam. He had no strength to hold back his urges, to stop this terrible persona for taking control over him.

_This album has to be RAW…this is going to be the album everyone talks about in the future…we’re gonna make history!_

_Are we?_

_Yes, now fucking open the bag…_

IOWA lowered himself down, dropping onto his knees harshly and looked at the silken, black sack.

IOWA took a deep breath. Silence.

For the first time. Silence.

And when the bag opened, IOWA grinned.

Broken glass. A small white bag. And a photo he specially printed. His muse. His _Eve_.

IOWA had to cut the obnoxious face of Chris and Joey that surrounded his lover. His precious little Eve, his innocent little _Meep…_

Delicately, IOWA took the small bag of white powder.

_Hello Corey. Thought you got rid of me?_

_Why…?_

_Because, let’s face it, you fucking need me…_

His hands shook terribly, pouring three distorted white lines on the floor.

_There we go, just a little inspiration. Some pain and heartache._

_I don’t….want to…_

IOWA knew about the small cocaine stash…Corey somehow didn’t…But it didn’t matter. The masked man shook his head at the voice and just did it, snorting all three lines frantically and threw his head back, snarling harshly.

Wide-eyed, breathing raggedy, he trembled with such an urgency to either kill or fuck, the initial rush of the drugs hitting the sharp, empty spaces that had been starved for such a kick. It reminded IOWA of the first time he fucked his little Eve…

Speaking of his little Eve…

The crooked photo of Sallie shook in his hand, the photo crudely cut down so that she was the main focus, a small pocket wife…

“I didn’t…wanted you to see this, my sweet…” He chuckled lewdly, his voice dropping to a cruel snarl. “But I wanted to see _you_ …” Gently, as if holding the very woman herself, IOWA placed the photo on the floor, his eyes glancing at the bag.

IOWA carefully grabbed a piece of glass, and the show was ready to go.

The haunting track began to play. Leisurely, IOWA removed his shirt, his mind resetting back to the primal days where language was no such thing, and only animal noises were audible and existed only. Strange, how unexpectedly naked he was…

Vibrating fingers grabbed the plasters and bandages from his body, removing all of his Eve’s aid in helping him heal. He looked down at the photo, like a man masturbating to a photo of his favourite porn-star, he felt the thrill beginning to surge inside of him.

IOWA began to sway lightly to the music, his eyes closed, getting into the track as his fingers began to break the sewing flesh of his self-harming acts.

They stung in protest.

IOWA was the one who sang. Not Corey. And Shawn knew that for a fact. Silently studying the persona and realising how controlling and destructive it was…but he loved the rawness of it. He felt the same about his Clown persona, the jokester with the dark side. Though IOWA had more than what the eye could see…

Maybe that was what Sallie sees at times…

 _“Relax, it’s over…/You belong to me, I fill your mouth with dirt…”_ IOWA looked at the photo of his precious wife before him. She wasn’t officially his wife…but it didn’t matter what _she_ thought. IOWA wanted her. He continued, serenading to her. Sickeningly. “ _Relax, it’s over…you can never leave/I take your second digit with me, love…_ ”

Paul Bearer looked at Shawn with a massive smile.

“Quite fascinating!” He commented, but the Clown said nothing. He only watched IOWA through the one-way screen, knowing that IOWA purposely hid himself behind a black screen. They could hear him singing…and what he was committing.

Everything was so haunting. The air around him cold, and IOWA was cutting himself again, reopening the wounds on his arms, breaking down his Eve’s hard work. Growling at his pain, small sick laughs, mocking himself for his pathetic mentality, the glass cutting shakily, glass shards in crimson ink…disturbing, dragging for eternity.

And Shawn saw this. He made a bitter promise to not interrupt Corey, and he had to obey that promise…

He was reluctant to leave him be, but he knew how much both he and IOWA needed this…

“ _You are, my first/I can barely breathe, I find you fascinating…You are, my favourite, lay you down to sleep/It’s all that I can do to stop, love…”_

The redness was beginning to grow, glossing all over his arms and hands.

His vacant eyes looked at the printed photo of Sallie, running a bloody hand down his lower stomach and groped himself, squeezing his cock. But he felt no such excitement. Only callous ache, the agony much too sharp for his arousal to even wake up.

_I love you…_

IOWA’s screams were growing in intensity as the anguish began to grow, masking his entire body, white-hot pain bleeding internally from his forearms where he was cutting, blood dripping beneath his hunched body, staining red everywhere.

So much blood…so much sickness…

He never wanted his Eve to see this, but he was blinded by his mind, controlled by the madness that was IOWA. It was just IOWA and pain.

The glass shard carved over his chest, torturing slowly, punishing himself for being alive. But as he felt all of this self-harm, his eyes looked at Sallie, the photographic image of her always smiling, so sweetly, so innocently.

She never judged, she never hated. She loved him, loved him so much…

His hands trembled uncontrollably, bleeding from holding the glass. More blood spewed out.

“ _So blue, so broken/Paper doll decays, I haven’t left you yet…So cold, subversive/your eyes are full of bleach, Tomorrow, I will go away again, love_ …”

His eyes shot open as the music intensified, screaming harder and louder, babbling about how the glass cuts nicely against his feeble flesh, the rawness of his heartache and hurting evident in his voice, lacing perfectly with the distressing music. A match made in heaven.

Like him and his Eve. Beauty and destruction.

IOWA laughed again, his voice drawling, looking at Sallie before him.

_IT CUTS NICE…IT CUTS NICE…IT CUTS NICELY…IT CUTS NICELY…_

She wouldn’t agree with him.

_Oh god…oh god….oh-oh god…oh god…oh god…_

His mind was clouded, and his eyes white and rolled back, blood trickling down his mouth and nose. The pain was so brutal that even his own body didn’t want it. Trying to reject _himself_. Yet IOWA was destructive and insane.

That was when IOWA stabbed the piece of glass into his upper chest…

At last, IOWA screamed:

“ ** _YOU ARE MINE! YOU WILL ALWAYS BE MINE! I CAN TEAR YOU APART! I CAN RECOMBINE YOU! ALL I WANT, IS TO COVET YOU ALL! YOU BELONG TO ME! I WILL KILL YOU, TO LOVE YOU!_** ”

His screaming continued, going on…and on…and on…the worth of life gone from his eyes, nothing was left. Dying. The glass raised to his collar bone and he sliced, so close to his throat. Dragging the glass point down his chest.

At this point, it was hard to tell where the blood started and stopped, his naked body glossed in blood…

A twisted, sickening grin pulled at IOWA’s lips, throwing his head down and bellowed in anguish, taking the glass and licked it, cutting his tongue in the progress, injecting more unwanted pain, his moans haunting and broken.

Looking back at the photo, he grinned and spat blood at it, giving her his life, giving her his insides, giving her his _everything-!_

Blood…

But he knew she wouldn’t want that. He unexpectedly remembered her distressed, broken face from last night, and IOWA’s pupils dinted…

_She hates you._

_I fucking told you...I fucking told you…told you…told you…told you told you told you told you told you-_

Instantly, he snatched the photo and threw it across the recording studio, discarding his pocket wife…

“ ** _DO YOU SEE?! DO YOU SEE?! AHHHHH! DO YOU SEE?! FUUUUUCCK! DON’T LOOK AT MEEEEEEEEEE!_** ”

_You’ll live forever…_

_I hate you…hate you…hate you…hate you…_

Blackness.


	55. Enigmatic

Laughter.

Kind laughter. The sort of laughter that made you feel warm inside. Something Sallie felt like she hadn’t heard in a long time.

“Oh! And there was this one time where Jamie and I went to a friend’s house party, and the silly bellend got so drunk he was asleep on the stairs. _I_ had to drag him up so he could get to bed in the spare room!”

And this was Sallie. She was laughing, a shine in her eyes that had vanished for the last few weeks after her discovery of Corey’s addiction. Sure, she had laughed and smiled many times before. But it was nothing like this, this felt far more _genuine_ , instead of forced just for the peace of everything.

Jamie sat beside Sallie, with Barbie now nestled against Liv at the other side of the table, allowing the two old friends to reunite. Jamie was casual, even in uniform, leaning back in the seat with his arm resting on the back of Sallie’s chair.

Rose found it a little unusual how Jamie just…strangely…reminded her of Corey…

A California Corey…

In the midst of the conversations, Barbie, Liz and Rose howled laughing at the thought of this story, with Jamie’s fellow police officers roaring too.

“Hey, Jamie still does that!” One of his officers chuckled, receiving an elbow from their sergeant.

“I can’t help it.” Jamie chuckled, shrugging. “Sometimes I just act it so _you_ guys don’t look so dumb!”

“Huh, yeah right! And that’s happened at _every_ work party?”

Another holler of laughter.

“Wow, you guys have quite a history!” Barbie commented, her brilliant blue eyes sparkling. “Like, you’ve known each other since high school?”

“Yeah,” Jamie replied, glancing over at Sallie. “She’s been real good to us.”

Sallie faced Jamie, her smile soft.

“You heard anything from the others?”

Jamie hesitated, as if thinking about the many years that had gone between them, and he frowned slightly.

“No…not really. But they have their own shit. Amy and James are getting married, Erica and Eddie _are_ married and waiting on a kid. Helen’s living in Belgium. _Fucking_ Belgium! And…the others…” Jamie paused again. “I don’t really know…”

Liv glanced at Rose and Barbie, and her silent gaze was perfectly executed between them. They knew what she was thinking of.

Rose leaned over to the Malibu officer.

“Hey, Jamie. You said you were off-duty, right?”

“Yeah,”

“Maybe you guys should hang out!” Rose pointed between him and Sallie. “Catch up while you can, you knoooow?”

“Yes,” Barbie agreed. “We’re only here for a few days, and it’s obvious you guys have a lot of catching up to do.”

Sallie looked at all three of her friends, her eyes flooding in such silent gratification. They must know how much it meant for Sallie to see her old best friend, separated by callous actions that she had no power over.

“I mean…” Jamie blinked, looking at Sallie, and by the way she was smiling so eagerly, he knew he didn’t need to ask.

“If that’s okay?” Sallie asked instead.

“Sure.” He looked back at Sallie’s friends. “You girls don’t mind if I steal Sallie away for a few hours?”

“Of course not!” Liv beamed, waving her hand kindly. “Go and have fun. You need it.” That was directly aimed at Sallie, but it came across as a polite chime.

“Great!” Jamie piped up, standing up from his seat. “Sal, I can show you the Beast!”

“The…Beast?” Sallie stammered, confusion in her tone. And Jamie tutted, rolling his eyes.

“The bike, you dickhead.” Jamie smirked, receiving a punch in the arm from Sallie. He laughed harder at that. “You call that a punch?”

“You’d be on the floor if I went full-power!” Sallie grinned back, slowly standing up. But she looked back at her friends, a small level of uncertainty in her face. “You guys…okay with just me buggering off like this?”

Barbie’s gaze held Sallie sternly, her voice dropping to a soft whisper.

“Go have fun, Sal. You’ve clearly missed him.”

“We’ll meet you back at the apartment.” Rose announced loudly, looking up and getting distracted by a walking waiter. “Hey, waiter! Can I get a mocha that won’t burn my tongue, _pleassseee_!”

“I’ll have my phone on me. We won’t be out too late.” Sallie smiled again, nodding once to show her gratitude, straightening up and turning to Jamie. “Let’s go.”

Jamie, his co-workers and Sallie left the café, walking back into the baking sun outside. Further down the parking lot was a cluster of motorbikes, all familiar yet unique. And there was one bike that peaked Sallie’s interest.

A black, glossy monster of a machine, which sat on two fat tyres, silvers complimenting its black livery. And its bulk form revealed what kind of bike it was instantly. Famous and adored.

“A fucking Harley Davidson?!” Sallie cried out, looking back at Jamie, who grinned smugly.

“Always fucking wanted one.” He replied, turning to his co-workers and they gradually began to separate, returning back to their own duties, or simply returning home after a long shift. And when Jamie and Sallie were alone, he turned back to her, hands tucked into his pockets. “Wanna ride?”

Sallie hesitated.

“I mean…I’ve never ridden a bike before.”

“It’s okay,” Jamie stated, approaching his pride and joy, running a hand over the silver handlebars. They were hot from the scorching sun. “This beast can _handle_ people. You won’t fall, I promise.” Cocking his leg over the bike, he got comfy in his seat and patted the seat behind him. “Get on.”

Heart thrashing in excitement, Sallie copied Jamie, straddling her small legs over the thick bike and sat behind Jamie. Her hands grabbed the back of his shirt, and a wave of sickening heartache broke through her.

Her fingers remembered holding Corey’s shirt like this. And what was worse, a familiar smell suddenly reached for her… An aftershave that Corey wore too.

She still heard nothing from him, and her heart was weeping…

Jamie pushed his foot down, the engine of the beastly bike roared to the skies, a thrilling sound of raw power and machinery, some of Sallie’s favourite things. The Harley Davidson rumbled and vibrated aggressively beneath her, and as Jamie revved the bike more, Sallie knew she was in for a treat.

“You might want to _actually_ hold me, Sal.” Jamie smiled kindly. “He’s pretty lethal with acceleration.”

Immediately, Sallie clung her arms around him. She felt him laugh, and that was when the bike lurched into action, suddenly bursting out of the parking lot, its engine so earthly deep, unmissable. And soon, the officer, the Brit and the bike ran out.

Barbie, Rose and Liv watched them leave, the roars of the bike inevitable.

“This should help Sal,” Barbie mewed softly after a moment. “She must really need this.”

“Yeah…” Liv agreed, looking over her shoulder to see Rose harassing the waiter. “Hey, Rose! They don’t have gluten-free bread! Get back here!”

Barbie looked over her shoulder too, her pretty eyes huge at the scene Rose was making.

“I honestly thought we had her trained!” She cried out.

* * *

“Okay Sal. Spill it.”

“Hmm?”

The Malibu officer gave her a playful glare.

“Don’t _Hmm_ me, woman. I know you’re hiding something!”

The bike ride was prompt, with Jamie only doing a loop at high speeds, his sirens misused for the purpose of entertaining his old friend, allowing her to experience the full burst of speed from his Harley Davidson. But he eventually had to stop and rolled the bike to a near parking spot at the end of the beach.

And now, the two old friends were walking along the path that stretched along the famous Malibu beach. Surprisingly, it was quiet today, which was good, for Sallie and Jamie just needed to focus on themselves. To enjoy what little time they had left together until Sallie had to return to Des Moines.

Sallie’s eyes glanced away.

“Hiding something?”

Jamie frowned, seeing how reluctant she was in talking to him. She used to be able to talk to him all the time. During his catch up with her in the café, Jamie had made mental notes about Sallie’s actions and mannerisms and knew something was off.

This wasn’t the Sallie he remembered. When she left, she was optimistic and bright. But now, she seemed forever defeated, always tired…much darker.

“You’ve been through some tough shit.” Jamie observed. “There’s no lie in that.”

“I mean…” Sallie shrugged quickly, brushing it off. “I have, yeah. But I’m a survivor and…y’know, _everyone_ goes through it!” She said this as if it was a mundane thing, but that didn’t convince Jamie that she was no longer struggling.

Jamie stopped walking suddenly, prompting Sallie to halt and turn around to him. And when she looked at him, Jamie had his serious face on. No chill, no jokes. Serious Jamie always meant something significantly important, and he certainly wasn’t going to simply drop this off.

“Sal…” He murmured; his hands tucked into his pockets again. “What happened?” He noted how Sallie looked away abruptly, her gaze falling away from him.

“J-Just stupid shit, really.” Sallie simply replied, but Jamie wasn’t shifting.

“Sal…” He said again. “Tell me the truth. I don’t like it when you try to hide stuff from me…”

Again, Sallie said nothing, fidgeting her fingers as her eyes tried to look natural, despite being pinned on the floor. “Something destroyed you.” Jamie continued, his voice calm and sincere. “And something is currently ruining you…you’ve been through so much shit. You always look tired.” He paused. “Not gonna lie, Sal, but you look rough right now, and I’m worried.”

Sallie’s shoulders eased, relaxing and she suddenly clenched her hands together. Jamie watched sorrowfully as his childhood best friend bowed her head down, shaking swiftly, and when she spoke, it was tragic and silent.

“It’s been so hard, Jamie…”

A few hours had passed after that. They found a nearby bench that faced the Malibu beach, and Sallie told Jamie her entire life-story while in Des Moines, from home and work, to Corey and even started to explain about IOWA, Corey’s sick and twisted persona. The complexity of her friendship with Corey, her affection for the man and yet the unravelled confusion in what to do when Corey got to a low point like last night. Sallie explained this in deep detail, with Jamie occasionally asking her questions to understand the bigger picture. And even right to where Corey self-harmed himself last night…

“I can’t seem to get the scent of blood out of my nose…” Sallie whimpered, rubbing her fingers in the corners of her drenched eyes, tears eventually calming down after weeping her little heart. “I just don’t know…where I’m going wrong. I thought…” Realising that there was no point in making any sense to herself, or Jamie, she stopped talking.

Jamie leaned back, putting a cigarette to his mouth and took a long, slow inhale. He was thinking.

Finally, he spoke, smoke billowing from his lips and nose like a strange dragon.

“You’re doing everything right.” He said, receiving an unconvinced glare from Sallie, but her reaction didn’t scare him. “You’re there for him. And right now, he needs you so much.”

“Pfft!” Sallie rolled her eyes, looking away. “If he fucking needed me, why couldn’t he talk to me about it? If I hadn’t showed up then…I could have found him _dead_.” Her eyes grew large with horror, turning back to Jamie and they began to tear up again. “I can’t find another dead body! I just can’t! Not after my…”

“I know.” Jamie mewed softly, his hand reaching over for her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. “But you got there in time. You saved him.”

Sallie was mute for a time, her weeping eyes falling back to their boots. She sniffed, closing her eyes and tears shimmered on her lashes.

“I just don’t understand…I thought he knew me better than that…”

“I know you’re angry, Sal. I feel you. Ali did the same with me.”

Sallie remembered that time…

“Yeah, I know…” She sighed deeply, cupping her face with her hands, hunching down on the bench. “It’s hard because he makes me feel so fucking useless sometimes. I’m scared of leaving him alone.”

“People find it easier to cry for help when they are alone.”

“But he knows he can come to me!” Sallie hissed, and realising who she was getting angry with, her voice dropped again. “I’m just tired of it…tired of it all…” She stared at the floor. “Like…when am I ever gonna have my break? What if _Slipknot_ doesn’t become a real rock-band? What if Roadrunner lets them down? And Corey, with him just fucking storming out of his job like that, I’m scared in case I can’t afford the apartment with him, and the fucking drugs-!” She faced Jamie desperately. “Jamie, _fucking_ _Cocaine_! Where is he getting it from?! What if he’s lied to me and hid some, and took some today?! And it’s not like he fucking _loves_ me anyway! I’m chasing a fucking broken dream-!”

“Ssh…” Jamie hushed her serenely, holding a hand up. His calm tone shooting her rant down peacefully. “You’re doing it again, Sal.”

He was right. Overthinking always ruined her.

Sallie stopped again, shutting her eyes tightly, her hands clenched into fists and they squeezed.

“It’s…hard…” She snarled under her breath. “It’s… _fucking_ …hard…”

“I know.” Jamie repeated, and Sallie knew he wasn’t just saying it. Jamie _knew_ her and understood her far more than anyone else after years and years of friendship. He knew Sallie Knight from the _very start!_ He knew, more than anyone in the world, what Sallie had been through, what she had been thinking, how valid her terrible dark thoughts seemed to have deepened since leaving California.

Some may even say he was much _closer_ than Corey in some places.

Trying to lighten the mood, he smiled. “Hey, you here for tomorrow, right?”

Sallie looked at him sulkily, nodding. Jamie continued.

“You said you had that fucked up dream. I know someone who is _really_ fucking great with dreams. Maybe she can help you define it.”

Sallie cocked a brow up.

“What, telling me that my brain stole copyright material from a brilliant novel and movie?”

_The fucking Shining, of ALL films…_

“It could mean something though, Sal!” Jamie encouraged, smiling brightly, cigarette at the corner of his lips. ”To think how distinct it is, it could mean something. Our brains are pretty fucking awesome, and dumb, at times.”

Sallie frowned. She was faintly interested, but…

“I’ll need to see what’s happening tomorrow. No clue if the guys are recording again or what. We’re expecting to fly out the next morning after tomorrow, and not sure if we’re doing something together…”

“I get you.” Jamie smiled, patting Sallie’s back. “But, if not, give me a call. Pinky is amazing at her shit.”

Sallie smirked lightly.

“Pinky? Is there a Brain with her too?”

Jamie grinned, lightly pushing her away from him in jest.

“She _is_ the brain! But she’s fucking brilliant at astrology, tarot cards, all that gypsy jazz. She once looked into my dream and told me the meaning behind it. Turns out it was all true and it helped me get to…well, where I am now.” He waved a hand at his police uniform. “She’s hilarious too. Loves her heavy metal so you’ll love her. And she’ll probably try to adopt you too, she’s a very lovable woman.”

That somehow made Sallie giggle lightly, charmed by this mysterious Pinky.

“I would like to see her. I’ll find out what’s happening tomorrow, however.”

“No worries, Sal.”

Grabbing her shoulder and pulling her back into his chest, he embraced his old friend deeply, feeling Sallie hugging onto him firmly too, and felt relieved. “I’ve missed you, Sal. I really have.”

“I’ve missed you too, Jamie.”

The sultry sun was beginning to settle behind the ocean before them, a deep orange sky with dashes of calm yellow painted above them, warning about the approaching evening.

Despite not seeing or hearing from one another for so long, it felt as though nothing has changed between them. If anything, Jamie saw Sallie and felt as though she had just returned from the future, looking more distressed and tired than when she left California.

It scared him for some reason…


	56. Pinky

Jamie’s Harley roared throughout the evening, announcing its glorious presence when it pulled up to the beach Apartments. From one of the rooms, Sallie saw Paul leaning against the balcony, admiring the dusk settling on the ocean. His attention was drawn to the roaring of the bike, and looking down, he smiled gratefully to see that it was Sallie. She had returned with her friend. The girls had told the band about Sallie’s reunion with her old friend, and the only one that didn’t take it well was-

“Is that Sallie’s shitty-ass boyfriend?”

Paul frowned, a little annoyed, and glared over his shoulder, seeing his vocalist slumped in the armchair, staring blankly at the TV. Corey was shirtless, showing off all of his fresh new cuts, dull, dark crimson lines marking his chest and arms like a rough sketch. It became too painful to wear a shirt. He was donned only in his black jeans, shoes and the IOWA mask. Paul didn’t understand why Corey was still wearing that damn mask at the moment, but the man refused to remove it. Perhaps it had something to do with how intense their session was today…

The dreadlocks were frozen against his chest, unmoved, the eyeholes black voids, and Paul could only vaguely see his dull, blue eyes in the shadows of it.

“Corey, don’t be a dick.” Paul grumbled, surprised to feel the anger in his voice.

IOWA’s eyes suddenly flicked onto the bassist, an unspoken fury of being told off evident there. But to Paul’s surprise, he didn’t retort. Instead, IOWA’s hard gaze locked onto Paul, holding him there for a long, painful moment.

Then, IOWA slowly stood up.

“Oh no, you’re not going out with that dumb thing on your head!” Paul grilled, spinning around and approaching him. Paul wasn’t one to get angry but finding Corey’s temper over something as nice and innocent as Sallie reuniting with an old friend annoyed him. There was something nice in store for her after Corey’s self-harming act the previous night, and the vocalist was being callous and unsupportive about her happiness right now. Just because Corey was pissed and depressed, doesn’t mean she should suffer…

Paul had noticed this for a long time, a silent observer, and he didn’t like how Corey was taking this now.

IOWA suddenly stormed towards Paul, and Paul quickly dropped the attempt in stopping the vocalist last minute, a small thought occurring at the back of his head and it frightened him.

_He’s going to push you off the balcony…_

And so, Paul stepped aside, allowing IOWA to approach the balcony and stood there, looming over the scene before him like a vindictive overlord scrutinizing his subjects.

A sickening darkness filled inside of him as he watched his little Eve step off the machine carefully, the Snake grabbed her arm to support her as she almost stumbled off it. The Snake was laughing.

Laughing _at_ her.

“Dickhead,” Jamie chuckled kindly, shaking his head. “Still so tiny!”

“Oi, shut it.” Sallie grinned, readjusting her shirt as Jamie reclined in his seat, watching her.

“I’m glad I found you,” Jamie said after a time, contentment in his tone. “California was never the same without you.”

“I know.” Sallie replied, tucking her hands into her jeans pocket. “Des Moines…I doubt you’d like it. The nightlife is nowhere near as colourful as California.”

Jamie grinned.

“So, you’ve got my number. Give me a text and let me know what happens. I think you’ll appreciate the visit with Pinky.”

“I am interested.” Sallie nodded. “You never disappoint…” Her voice trailed when she saw Jamie’s eyes look up, and a strange frown pulled at his features. Sallie spun around and felt a terrible sinking feeling in her gut when she looked up to find IOWA standing on the balcony, glaring down so hatefully through his dreadlocks. His eyes weren’t just aiming at Jamie…he was staring at them _both_.

_IOWA, don’t fucking embarrass me…_

Jamie stared back at IOWA, hard, holding no fear in his features. Jamie was incredibly brave, back in high school and even more so in the police force. Thankfully, he had seen _plenty_ of strange things during his time at work. And seeing a masked man glaring down at him wasn’t the strangest thing. However…

“That’s Corey…?” Jamie murmured lowly, staring back at the masked man.

“IOWA…” Sallie whispered back, her eyes never leaving IOWA. IOWA didn’t look away, preparing for a stare down. His glare was scolding at his little Eve, seeing how she was being tempted by the Snake. If his little Eve gets taken by the Snake, it will ruin _both of them!_

Jamie cocked a brow, finding himself a little torn with letting Sallie come back to Corey. His body was a massacre, brutalised with cuts and scratches. He was a lot worse than what he thought he would look like-

“He’s harmed himself more…” His best friend choked.

At last, the police officer turned his gaze away from IOWA, looking at Sallie to see the depressed disappointment in her features.

IOWA seemed to have noticed this too. He blinked, looking down and placed a hand over his chest, feeling the stinging wounds he committed himself and realised that he had only hurt his little Eve more.

Turning on the heels of his shoes suddenly, he turned and left the balcony, hiding within the apartment, leaving Paul to look lost.

“You sure you wanna come back to him?” Jamie had to ask, seeing how conflicted Sallie was.

“Of course.” Sallie replied, though she was hurting. “He’s done something while I was away, and I need to find out.”

Jamie faltered to ask the next question.

“Does IOWA scare you, Sal?”

Sallie hesitated, looking away for a time to try and hide the truth. But in the end, it was all too obvious.

“Sometimes.”

The Malibu Cop sighed deeply, placing a hand on her arm and rubbed it.

“Listen, _please_ consider the visit with me tomorrow. Pinky might be able to help you figure out IOWA…and Corey.” Sallie looked back at Jamie at last, chewing her lower lip. “It’s obvious you care and love him so much.”

Sallie gave Jamie a sad smile.

“I do…”

Eventually, Jamie rode off back to his Headquarters, reluctantly leaving Sallie back to her apartment. He made sure she called him if anything were to happen.

Of course, she kept this in mind.

Paul was making his way back to his apartment, meeting Sallie halfway up the staircase and smiled lightly at her, informing her that Corey had a hard day recording, and he was a little on edge…not that Sallie needed to be told. She thanked the bassist softly, watching him return to his own room, and she approached Corey’s place.

Sallie grabbed the door-handle and pulled it down, pushing the door open and entering Corey’s temporary apartment. As expected, she saw IOWA. He had returned to the armchair, watching the TV, his back towards her. And when she made her presence known, he didn’t react. He didn’t turn around and speak. He ignored her.

Clearly, he was pissed off.

For a long moment, Sallie didn’t know what to make of it. She felt as though she should be furious with how he was acting before, how he _clearly_ harmed himself again when she wasn’t around, and no matter how desperately she wanted to ask Paul about the new wounds on his body, she decided against it.

It wasn’t Paul’s fault. And he wasn’t the one to give her answers.

Sallie remained by the door, waiting to hear what IOWA had to say.

Nothing.

_He’s fucking furious with you._

_But why?! I did nothing!_

_He’s fucking jealous! Jealous! That’s all he is! Envy, envy, envy!_

_He’s had a hard time today…_

_If anyone should be angry, it’s YOU._

_But…I can’t be angry now. He needs me…_

_Now, wait a minute-_

Ignoring her own thoughts, Sallie slowly approached IOWA from behind, standing beside him and looked up to see what he was watching. Some sitcoms that meant nothing to her. When the canned laughter erupted, IOWA wasn’t prompted in laughing.

Delicately, she placed a hand on his shoulder, feeling how cold his flesh was, how hard his shoulder was. Her fingertip brushed against a fresh cut. Sallie lowered herself down, her eyes watching IOWA. He didn’t move. Ignoring her…maybe?

She pressed her lips onto his shoulder, kissing him calmly there, slow little pecks of fondness pressing at his skin. She felt IOWA moving ever so slightly.

The last thing he probably needed was an argument, an interrogation about the new cuts. From his reactions on his wounds, he was aware that Sallie was upset. And so, he probably felt ashamed.

_Make him feel good._

A deep soft sigh, Sallie continued to kiss him, moving her lips into his neck, her face pushed against the rough dreadlocks. Now, IOWA was shuffling, closing his eyes and letting out the softest growl Sallie had ever heard. Her hand grabbed his arm, and carefully, she moved her palm down onto his chest, making sure she didn’t hurt him, but to softly caress his wounded body. Her fingers ran down his body, touching his stomach, feeling the softness there.

Finally, IOWA moved, turning around and faced his little Eve, seeing her smiling so elegantly at him.

_She still loves me!_

“I’ve missed you.” Sallie whispered, kissing the mask’s forehead. “So much…”

_Chide at the wounds later. He needs you._

“Love…” IOWA murmured, his hand reaching up and touching her cheek. “My little Eve…” His voice sounded terribly fragile suddenly, and Sallie hushed him serenely, grabbing his hand and kissing it lovingly, kissing every digit of his fingers, his palm and the back of his hand. Even at the wrists where his flesh was severely assaulted. But each kiss emitted a small sting, a little sting that IOWA found himself to enjoy.

“It’s okay, I’m here now.” Sallie hushed, resting herself onto the arm of the chair, her hands holding his face and looking at him with such a gentle devotion in her eyes. “I heard you had a hard day today. You can relax.”

IOWA gave a small whine, his other hand reaching and touching Sallie’s thigh, stroking it as his eyes sang a sad note. He abruptly grabbed at her, his fingers pinching a bit too cruelly and aggressively, he pulled Sallie down onto his lap, clinging onto her like a child with its beloved teddy, and buried his face into her breasts, shivering hard. His fresh cuts stung in protest, but he didn’t care. Now he could _feel_ Sallie, and that warmed his cold, dead body.

His best friend immediately clung onto him too, holding his skull in her arms, hushing him soothingly, fingers grabbing each dreadlock and pulling them comfortingly through her hand.

“Let’s sleep.” Sallie suggested after a long moment of embracing. IOWA looked up at her, his eyes strangely wide and almost innocent-like. “We’ve both had a hard day.”

Carefully shuffling off him, Sallie turned the TV off and grabbed IOWA’s hands, pulling him up from the armchair. She swallowed IOWA in her arms, her small stature hugging his waist cautiously, pressing her cheek onto his chest. She could hear his heartbeat, slow and depressed.

IOWA’s hands shook hard, lifting to touch Sallie’s hair, and stroked it. It was soft, and when she felt his fingers clenching in it, she noted a sorrowful grasp. Nothing aggressive anymore.

IOWA held at her hair, making her tilt her head back, and when her eyes met the hollow features of the IOWA mask, IOWA leaned down and kissed her softly, solemn.

“Oh, sweetie…” Sallie whispered against his lips between kisses. “You’re so sad…” And just to prove her point, Sallie’s eyes locked onto his gaze, and she felt her own tears brimming her lashes when she noticed Corey’s eyes hiding behind the mask, and he was crying, his powerful blue eyes glistening. “Don’t cry…” She whimpered, failing to take her own command, and pulled IOWA back, kissing him intensely, feeling him holding onto her, and _latched_ onto her, holding her with such a strength of fear in losing her again. “I’m here…I’m here…” She reassured him quietly.

IOWA sniffed, his lips quivering, and she noted the tears streaking down past his lips beneath the mask.

“I…” IOWA managed to gurgle, and Sallie waited patiently for him to finish. But IOWA feared the words he could use, and so he remained silent.

“Don’t talk…” Sallie calmly instructed. “Just relax. I’m here, sweetheart…” Then: “Please…” Sallie grabbed the hem of the mask, and she slowly pulled it up. IOWA’s hand snatched at her wrist. “Please…” Sallie begged, her voice breaking.

IOWA didn’t say anything.

Then, he slowly removed his hand, granting Sallie to power to remove his face. Sallie carefully pilled the IOWA mask off over his head and revealed the destroyed expression of Corey. His eyes were dark, red with hot tears. His face was vaguely marked with some black paint he had failed to remove, making his handsome face so dirty. But it didn’t matter.

Sallie placed the IOWA mask on the armchair, her small hands touching Corey’s cheeks, drenched from tears. His black face-paint stained her fingers.

“Corey, talk to me…what’s wrong?” Sallie whispered.

“I…don’t wanna talk about it…”

“No, _please_ , talk to me…” Sallie repeated, her voice a little intense now. “Keeping it bottled up is going to make you worse. Talk to me, I’m here for you.”

“You hate me…”

“And who the fuck told you that?” Sallie’s voice remained soft, but it was edged with something Corey didn’t wanted to acknowledge. Sallie’s hands snatched at Corey’s face, forcing him to look at her dead in the eye. “I _fucking_ love you…”

Corey stared numbly, not taking her comment seriously, not believing her. And Sallie could tell. “I don’t hate you. I can _never_ hate you…” She pulled him into another kiss, a passionate kiss shared by many wives with their military husbands after the world war, a desire that was indescribable. “Stop listening to the voice in your head…” Sallie added, her voice trembling as tears ran down her cheeks. “It’s full of lies.”

“IOWA…tells me these things…”

“Well, IOWA is fucking wrong.” Sallie glared at the mask, as if scolding at it, and back at Corey, her eyes softening. “Don’t listen to him, because I need to re-educate him too.” Using her thumbs and fingers, she wiped the tears from Corey’s eyes, smearing black on his face and her hands. “I love you so fucking much, Corey Taylor. I’d fucking _die_ for you…”

Corey didn’t react. He wasn’t believing her words…and she got infuriated. Sallie pointed at the mask. “Put it on. Please…” She took a step away, watching as Corey slowly looked at the mask, and he grabbed it, pulling the dreadlocked monster over his head, and when it was adjusted, IOWA looked back at Sallie with a temper. But his little Eve did not shift, she did not falter.

She wasn’t frightened of him.

“IOWA…” Sallie said after a time. “Stop bullshitting to Corey. You don’t fucking know me…”

“Don’t know you?” IOWA spat suddenly, a precipitous change in personality. “I _do_ know you!”

“Do I love you?”

“You fucking love Corey. But you _don’t_ love me!” Now IOWA was promptly losing his temper, like a child jealous for the affection its parents gave to its sibling. “You don’t fucking love me! So you don’t fucking love Corey!”

“You’re wrong, asshole!” Sallie shouted back, tears springing from her eyes. “I love _both_ of you! Don’t you _fucking_ get it?! You _are_ Corey! _Both_ of you! You’re just different sides of the same coin! But it doesn’t matter, because I fucking _love_ Corey! And that means I love _all_ of his personas! Past, present _and_ future! Whatever may come, I will _never_ leave Corey, no matter what persona comes out of him, because at the end of the day, they are _all_ him! And that’s who I love. _All_ of him! His bad and his good, his dumb and his smart, his hate and his love!”

“Lies! _All_ lies! No one loves me! No one loves _us!_ Jodie was supposed to be the one-!”

Unexpectedly, IOWA was spinning, collapsing onto the floor from the force that suddenly hit him.

His head was dizzying, unbalanced.

A slap. His little Eve _slapped_ him!

Cupping his cheek to feel the hateful sting beneath it, he turned on the floor and glared furiously at his little bride, her hand poised and shaking, palm red from the aggressive, hard slap.

“ _I AM NOT JODIE!!_ ”

There. Right there, was the piercing, animal scream of his Eve, and IOWA found himself cowering against it, his hands holding at where his ears would be, his arms cocooning around his face. His little Eve wasn’t so little no more.

And stood before him was a fiery Goddess of darkness. And she was _incredibly_ displeased. “When are you _ever_ gonna fucking realise that Jodie _did not fucking love you?!_ She was _using_ you! And you keep wanting to go back to her, despite knowing the facts! All I ever wanted was for you to fucking _love_ me, after everything I’ve fucking done, and you keep-keep fucking _thinking_ about her!” Sallie hunched down, her hands grasping at her skull, and small squeals of heartache bled out of her lips as she pulled at her hair, tearing some of it out of her scalp, trembling, breaking, like a volcano about to erupt. “Do you-Do you fucking love me? Do you think of her when you see me? Do you fucking think of her when we fuck? Do you _want_ me to be her?! Would you rather have Jodie than me?! What does she have that I don’t?! What-I-D-don’t…get…I can’t… _fucking…_ ” Her voice and pants and screams and cries mirroring the _Iowa_ song he recorded this afternoon.

And just as IOWA mustered the courage to look up at his terrifying bride, he noticed something distinct about her eyes. Staring back at his own soul. “ _I’M GONNA FUCKING KILL HER!_ ”

IOWA shuffled onto his knees, but very quickly, the door behind him opened, and he felt the alarmingly tall presence of Mick hurrying towards Sallie, who was in the midst of her mental breakdown, yanking the small woman off the floor and held her, preventing her from running away.

And she screamed. And screamed.

IOWA sat on his knees to see what he had created, and in the barrage of Mick struggling to hold Sallie down, he heard Mick bellowing in ache to find her biting into his arm in order to release her. But the guitarist held her tight, Jim and Craig suddenly encircling the small woman as more of their friends filled the room, aware of the screams coming from the apartment and thought of the worst.

By the time Shawn entered the room, he saw Mick, Jim and Craig holding Sallie down onto the bed as she thrashed and screamed about how she was going to kill Jodie, his eyes skimmed past Sid, Chris, Paul and Joey. Liv, Barbie and Rose were hidden behind them, all looking distressed and were already crying.

Finally, Shawn looked behind him to see IOWA hunched in the corner of the room, his hands grabbing his skull as he rocked himself back and forth, muttering _‘I fucking told you…’_ , mirroring the same chant he emitted during the _Iowa_ recording…

Another sleepless night. And despite this, Corey insisted in returning back to record more music. Liv, Barbie and Rose stayed in the apartment, and regardless to everyone’s insistence, Sallie decided to go out with Jamie. She wanted nothing to do with anyone, those bastard apartments were nothing but fucking cursed.

Everyone had offered their room to Sallie, but she was giving them the silent treatment, refusing to invade their spaces.

_That’s all I ever fucking do. Whenever shit happens, I have to move somewhere, I have to go bother someone…I have to hide in someone’s place…_

She would have slept outside if Mick didn’t overpower her with his strength and forced her to stay inside his and Barbie’s apartment. And even then Sallie was screaming, terrified that Mick was going to hurt her for biting him. He proved her wrong by holding onto her and hushing her, rocking her like a father to his daughter. And even Barbie clung onto the distressed Brit.

At this point now, no one knew where Corey and Sallie stood anymore…not even Corey and Sallie knew…

* * *

Slowly, Sallie wrapped her arms around Jamie’s waist harder, closing her eyes as another wave of tears came to her. The rumbles of the Harley rippled through her fragile body, almost hurting, the brilliant bellows of the machine’s engine deafening her inner thoughts. But it never silenced the images.

Sallie remembered the bite mark she left on Mick’s arm, and shame chilled her to the bone.

She felt Jamie’s hand touching hers. He didn’t need to say anything, for he knew exactly what happened last night. The rants Sallie told him last night made him certain that she needed to see Pinky. And the Malibu Police Officer’s gaze fell sorrowfully when he felt Sallie weep on his back, still injured from the incident.

Whatever happened to the Sallie he knew…?

Sallie had brought a backpack with her, and it only held _one_ thing…

“Pinky actually saved my life,”

Sallie looked up at Jamie with such sorrowful eyes, drained from what little happiness she had to begin with since landing here.

“How?”

“Well,” Jamie leaned against his Harley, arms folded across his shirt. He was off duty today, thankfully. So, he was dressed in his casual black and pink shirt, tight jeans and boots. His fingers were banded with rings and a bracelet hugged his wrist. A bracelet Sallie got him years ago, actually.

The Harley was parked in a busy parking lot in central California, basking in the sun. “When you left, I didn’t really have anyone. Sure, I had our friends still…but when we grew up, they all went in their own directions, and we barely have contact now.” Jamie watched Sallie for a time, seeing how she was barely reacting. But she was listening for sure. “I got lonely _very_ quickly. And…” He looked away for an instant.

“You tried to kill yourself.”

“Yeah…” Jamie murmured, disgusted in himself. The way Sallie said it told him that she was disappointed in him. But who wouldn’t? Even he was disappointed. “But, it was Pinky that saved my life!” He beamed a smile, trying to brighten the moment. Sallie cocked a brow at him. She was intrigued. “Not only did she stopped me from jumping off, but she took me in too when I was homeless. I owe my life to her…”

“Wait, you were homeless too?”

Jamie nodded.

“Lost my job, lost my home…the girlfriend I had at the time just abandoned me. I wanted to die.” He looked full of shame for a time, but when he smiled bravely, Sallie felt relieved that there was _at least one_ happy ending to someone’s life. “But Pinky gave me a pep talk and wouldn’t leave me alone.” He chuckled. “Damn, she was like a second mother to me!”

“Jamie…” Sallie whimpered, looking hurt. “If I had known-”

“Stop it.”

Sallie went silent. Jamie fully faced her, grabbing her arms and pulling her into a tight hug. “You didn’t know. You were in a different state and couldn’t help me even if you knew.” Pushing his face into her neck, he held her close for a long time, allowing her to feel secure with him, to trust him. He wasn’t like Corey. He was stable now. “I’m not like Corey anymore.” He added. “But I promise you that you both will get through this. What Corey is experiencing is…indescribable and terrifying.” He pulled away and gave Sallie a bright smile. “He’s stronger than he thinks.”

 _But am I even strong enough…_?

Sallie, however, gave Jamie a small smile in appreciation.

“Thank you…”

“Now,” Jamie turned, beginning to walk down the path towards a building. It looked derelict, though signs of life were evident on it, with fairy-lights decorating the old windows, soft red and purple fabrics hung around it like make-shift curtains, and several potted plants sat on the windowsill. A sign made of carved wood presented itself proudly above the door, beckoning all walks of life to come inside.

**PINKY’S CABIN**

Already, Sallie could feel a warm presence inside. It looked like one of those spiritual stores that sold incense sticks and scent candles.

The store itself wasn’t open for the public, but for private meetings, it was always open. Jamie had called Pinky himself and arranged the appointment, and as expected, the door was left unlocked for him to walk inside what used to be his old home. Sallie followed, instantly invaded by the brilliant scents of fresh wood, lavender and a mixture of floral candles that had been lit. The dirty city air outside never entered inside of here, but it felt as though Sallie was transported to another world, some sort of eastern country she only knew existed in dreams.

Jamie allowed Sallie to walk through the beaded curtain first, locking the door behind him and followed her in, feeling the comforting sensation of home taking him. Sallie parted the beads and walked inside, greeted by a large, round room that was filled with colourful decorations, banners of apple-green and peacock blues. Buddhas dotted around the room at random, holding crystal orbs that glistened in the stunning lights that bled through the window. Cinnamon and vanilla were strong in the air, and Sallie noted a string of white-ashen smoke swirling in the air from a lit incense stick.

This place was a room of tranquillity, a place Sallie never dared set foot in before. Three archways spanned from the centre room, leading to places unknown.

Stepping around carefully, her eyes taking in the amazing detail of this haven. Tassels hung from the ceiling, a rainbow of every colours, candy-stripes from handmade cushions and banners made of black and Indian gold.

This world was full of colour.

Jamie could tell by her expression and silence that she was taken back by the beauty of this place. 

“Pinky, we’re home!” Jamie announced suddenly, bringing Sallie back to where she was standing. She stood beside Jamie, trying not to look too invasive in such a place that he once called home.

“Ahh, Jamie!” A voice suddenly sounded from one of the archways. “Just let me get this girl in gear.”

“Girl…in gear…”

Sallie murmured to herself, but Jamie said nothing. Her answers will come to her. And very soon, Sallie heard the loud beeping of something, like a large truck reversing.

_Wait, unless…_

And at that point, a large, round glittering woman arrived onto the scene, sat on a mobility scooter. Sallie wasn’t expecting this at all. The woman had glorious bright, pink hair, soft waves running down her back. A lilac headdress wrapped around her head, tied nicely with a sapphire gemstone. Glass bangles hung from her chubby wrists with an assortment of gem-stoned rings around each finger, each stone representing something dear to her. Heavy blue eye makeup was painted perfectly, bright red lips with a beauty spot on her right cheek.

For someone who adored heavy metal, according to Jamie, she was awfully bright. But that didn’t bother Sallie. If anything, she was at awe at the stunning attire this woman had. She was so colourful!

The woman, Pinky, gave Sallie and Jamie a bright smile, driving her mobility scooter towards them with such care, easily avoiding the wooden elephant statues that decorated the floor. Her mobility scooter, however, was black, and plastered on it was stickers of heavy metal bands, ranging from Enslaved to Slayer, Metallica and even KoRn. Other bands decorated it, bands Sallie had never heard of before, sugar skulls and roses. And Sallie was impressed with the comical value of the false license plate at the front of the mobility scooter, proudly presenting her nickname.

“Welcome home, Jamie!” Pinky cried out, her arms opening for a hug, her jewellery sparkling in the dazzling light. Jamie was already approaching her, hugging the woman firmly, and Sallie smiled. She was grateful that there was someone for him in this damn city when she was taken away.

After the hug, Pinky looked at Sallie, reflecting her smile back, just as warm and welcoming. “And Sallie, I’m so _glad_ to meet you at last, darling!” She opened her arms at Sallie, and the Brit found herself hugging her suddenly, as if she had known her for years. Which was strange…but Sallie felt a kinship with this woman already. Pinky’s hug was firm, motherly and caring, something both Sallie and Jamie craved for.

“Nice to meet you too.” Sallie greeted once she pulled away. “Jamie’s told me a lot about you.”

“Same here,” Pinky nodded, closing her eyes. “And even if he didn’t, I can already tell how troubled you are. How much you’ve been through.”

Sallie blinked at this statement, and Jamie decided to clear her thoughts.

“Pinky has this gift that she can read people’s auras and figure out things they’ve been through before.” He shrugged. “I wouldn’t even need to tell her anything and she could see your life like that.” He clicked his fingers. Pinky chuckled, waving a large hand at her adoptive son.

“Oh, you.” She shook her head, touched by Jamie’s words of admiration. Then she looked back at Sallie for a time, focusing her full attention on the little Brit. For a long moment, nothing was said, and Sallie stared back with unease to see Pinky staring at her. “You’ve brought something for me.”

“Um…” Sallie faltered, a little surprised. Even though it was in a backpack, she was surprised that Pinky knew what her intentions were. “Yeah, I do…I was wondering if it…”

“It will help, I promise you, darling.”

Jamie didn’t know what Sallie and Pinky was talking about, but they both seem to find a connection promptly, and when Sallie looked at Jamie, he saw that she was realising he was speaking the truth about Pinky. Psychic, a fortune teller that helped. Instead of making profit, she was trying to make everyone’s lives better. And that included helping others with their most intimate issues.

“You’re safe here, darling,” Pinky continued, grabbing the steering wheel of her mobility scooter and turned down to one of the archways. “We do not judge, only help. Follow me, please.”

Sallie hesitated, looking at Jamie, who stood beside her, placing a hand on her back. He saw the look she was giving him, a look of fear for the unknown and scepticism, something he too felt when he was in the same position as her.

“It’s okay,” He whispered, and once she mustered the courage, Sallie followed Pinky, Jamie standing close beside her.


	57. Purity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AUTHOR'S NOTES:-  
> Okay, not gonna lie, I know this chapter has gotten A LITTLE WEIRD, but let me have my fun! <3

“Please, take a seat, darling. Any seat.”

Obeying Pinky’s command, Sallie looked down at the small circles of plush, colourful cushions, seating cushions to be precise. She grabbed her backpack straps and removed them from her shoulders, holding the black bag before her and, gently, Sallie picked the dark blue cushion, sitting down onto it, the darkest colour out of the lot. It attracted her in the same way as if black were involved.

But this was interesting anyway, because-

“Blue.” Pinky pointed out, and when Sallie looked up, she realised she had sat on a trap, seeing Pinky smirking knowingly. “I knew you would.”

“Why? Blue is one of my favourite colours-!”

“But you would have preferred black, yes?” Pinky wasn’t picking at Sallie, of course not. She was merely observing from where she sat in her mobility scooter. “Colours represent the inner person of _every_ soul, and I _knew_ black is the closest colour to you.”

Sallie couldn’t help but smile cynically.

“Why? Because I’m Satan’s child and black is the colour of evil-”

“Not at all.” Pinky was remarkably calm, knowing what to expect from such a fiery individual like Sallie. “The colour black brings you a sense of comfort, a sense of warmth that no colour can ever give you. It brings you peace, happiness…” Her eyes glanced away from Sallie for a time, searching for another word, and with a touched smile, her eyes reached back to Sallie. “ _Faith_.”

The word was simply put, but Jamie watched as his best friend suddenly got struck by a word that meant more to her than ever. Sallie’s hands clenched onto the backpack’s straps harder. “That word means so much, doesn’t it?” Pinky was ever so calm, her voice soft-spoken like a respecting mother trying to quiet her crying child.

“It’s the nickname I give to Corey…”

“Corey…yes. That was all I could feel when you came in. This overbearing presence of two men.”

_Two men?_

Now really intrigued with Pinky’s ability, Sallie decided to test her.

“Two men…that is true.” Sallie murmured, her eyes dropping to her clenching fingers, knowing her eyes were windows to the soul, trying not to give too much information away. “Do you know them?”

“I know one who severely loves you. Deeply.” Pinky smiled lightly, watching Sallie. “If I have to be honest, it’s not a healthy affection. It’s an _obsession_.”

Jamie watched in silence from one of the corner sofas, nestled between the multicoloured cushions and throws, watching the scene before him. The visit has already started without any more need of introductions and reassurance. Sallie was already in, and he knew he could trust Pinky with his best friend.

Pinky’s smile dropped, the more she was describing it, the more it was scaring Sallie. How uncannily accurate all of this was. She felt no such invasion into her mind, no perversion to her consciousness. Pinky was only watching her with her chubby hands clasped on her lap and was speaking. Nothing had actually begun. With a slight tilt of her head, Pinky’s glass jewellery clanged softly. “Yes…he’s terribly frightened of losing you, and sometimes he uses his anger to keep you in. Or threaten those around him. A toxic persona…”

“He’s not toxic…” Sallie managed to mutter, and Pinky smiled softly, letting her speak. “He’s misunderstood.”

“That might be true, but what he’s doing is tainting the man that’s locked behind him.”

Sallie gradually looked up, her hard eyes locking with Pinky to see if there was any mockery in her features. Everyone else had laughed at her for loving Corey, so it would make no difference if…

Pinky was not.

“There is a man in a cage behind you,” Pinky continued. “He needs to be free in order to live his life. He’s living under the shadows of a _thing_ that he calls himself…but it has taken over him. Like a darkness that had been bleeding inside of him for far too long, and he is internally bleeding.” Pinky closed her eyes in hurt. “He has and will continue to attempt harm just to escape this drowning, and maybe commit suicide-”

“Why are you _saying_ these things?!”

Pinky’s eyes opened, and already she knew Sallie was on the brink of crying. The little Brit sat on the cushion, one fist clenched and shook hard, her knuckles bleaching. Defensive. Offended. “Why does everyone not wanna fucking _help_ me?!”

“I am helping, darling-”

“Everyone just wants to make us suffer! They say things that hurt, and those things don’t help-!”

“They hurt because they are _true_ , and you _know_ they are true, Sallie Knight.”

That struck a harsh silence from the shaking woman. Jamie sat on the sofa, amazed. Last time he heard Sallie speak like this, he remembered clearly she struck a stranger with her fists. And he was just waiting for Sallie to spring onto her feet to attack the disabled woman. He knew her too deeply; he knew how deep her temper ran.

He slowly stood up to go comfort his friend, but when Pinky held a hand to him, her gaze never moving from the furious woman, he knew what it meant, and sat back down.

“Not now, Jamie. It has already begun. Just watch.”

“Okay…” Jamie sounded reluctant, but he trusted Pinky. When Pinky slowly dropped her hand, her eyes focused on Sallie, who seemed to frown like a hurt, little child.

“I am not here to hurt you, Sallie. You _know_ that. I am here to seek whatever you are seeking too. This is a journey for us both. But you must understand that I can see at a different point of view, and you must bear it. Sometimes our love fades our consciousness and we do not know what is wrong. What you define as love is what one would define as obsession, what _he_ would define as his love for you is a dangerous fixation that could harm you, him and others. You must confront these, and I will guide you.” She clasped her glittering hands together. “But I must have your co-operation, and you must understand that this isn’t going to be easy. You’ll be forced to seek your deepest thoughts, which could, in turn, become your worst nightmares.”

Sympathetically, Pinky watched Sallie’s hard eyes tremble, slowly softening, and eventually she gave into the stare down, blinking, and hung her head in shame.

“I want to help Corey.”

“You’re not going to help him.” Pinky corrected. “You’re going to _save_ him.”

* * *

Joey sat by the drum kit, frowning. It was nothing like the one back at home, one that he practically bought and upgraded like a child of his own. But it was close enough. All of the right drums were here, the cymbals and bass, so he couldn’t complain too much. It just… _wasn’t his_ drumkit.

He heard a stumble, and looking up, he noticed it was Corey approaching the recording room he was in. Joey gave him a small, supportive smile.

“How are you feeling?”

“Fuck you.”

And Joey recoiled, his attention back to the drumkit, listening to his vocalist taking long strides towards the centre of the recording studio, snatching the microphone stand and muttering how _fucking stupid he was,_ seizing the microphone from the stand and throwing the stand onto the floor carelessly. Joey kept his eyes down, away from IOWA, who stood in the centre now, looking at the microphone as if it was a dearly parted lover, one hand grabbed onto it, the other stroked it slowly, as if caressing hair.

From the fragments of Shawn’s conversation with Mick, the mention of this IOWA made Joey realise what was happening. He noticed the strange aura that came from Corey when he wore the mask, but never really paid much attention to it. But after last night, Joey was starting to _see_ it.

IOWA was nasty, that’s for sure. And he came onto the scene drunk instead of Corey.

“I’m so glad you boys are ready to record the next song!” Paul Bearer’s voice chimed as the door opened, and Joey’s fellow bandmates flooded inside. Shawn and Mick’s eyes locked onto IOWA, seemingly aware of his presence now as Sid and Chris approached their makeshift equipment. Craig followed silently, glancing at Jim as if asking him about Corey’s actions, and Jim said nothing. He had nothing to say. They all knew Corey was drinking this morning, and none of them stopped him. None of them were ready for more of his shit. But they weren’t expecting him to be topple and wavering where he stood.

Paul Bearer didn’t seem bothered by this. “Right, gentlemen, I’ll let you all decide what songs to perform. I shall prepare ourselves with tea and biscuits!” Paul Bearer smiled, wiggling his fingers in delightful anticipation and turned, leaving the recording studio.

Silence.

For the first time, Slipknot was silent. Corey was leaning against the wall, his head tilted down, eyes shut. Shawn pulled his Clown mask over his face, now forming his costume with the rest of his brothers.

“So,” Shawn said after a time, tapping his baseball bat at the keg. “What songs should we do?”

No one said anything. It was normally a ramble of excited suggestions between the brothers, but the situation from last night seemed to have deter their motivation for anything.

 _I want to go home…_ Joey wanted to whine, but he knew that wasn’t an option. He began to think of his home, however, back in dreary Des Moines, and found himself to feel a bit homesick, to feel a bit strange how he hated such a place, and yet yearned to be there right now.

“ _This is my fault! This is my fucking fault!”_

_“No, Sal, it isn’t!”_

_“I fucking ruined everything!”_

“You never ruined anything…” Joey whispered under his breath, his drumsticks tapping softly. Trying to convince Sallie that she wasn’t at fault for ruining this trip was incredibly hard. Now, she wasn’t just stubborn. She was religiously refusing to accept any alternatives. What did he expect? All of her life she had spent being the blame for something else, and it seemed to be easier for her to just take the bullet and accept the blame. But that was something Joey refused to let her. They were _Slipknot_ , not her toxic stepmother…

He remembered that night when Sallie experienced the weird dream after watching _The Shining…_

Jim, Mick and Paul plucked at their guitars miserably, their minds drawing blanks.

“ _Anyone?_ ” The Clown asked, a little more agitated at the silence. But he knew why there _was_ silence.

IOWA moved suddenly, and Clown turned to see that the masked vocalist was hunching down, hands on his knees, hurling as the warning of vomit was rising, and promptly threw up on the floor, a thick, disgusting sound of splattering bile in the corner of the recording studio.

Chris looked away in mute disgust. Joey’s head slowly perked up after a moment.

“Hey, Clown?”

The Clown looked at Joey.

“What?”

“Y’know how you wanted to make a music video for _Spit It Out_?” Joey pouted. “I think…I think I have an idea.”

“Hmm?”

“Remember that film… _The Shining_? Sallie had a dream about it that I think might be of interest.”

Shawn cocked a brow under his mask in intrigue.

* * *

A cup of coffee was placed before Sallie, who took it and began to drink it frantically. Pinky chuckled softly.

“I’ve never seen anyone drink coffee so fast, more so for a Brit.”

“Coffee is part of my bloodstream.” Sallie said with a small grin. She seemed to have calmed down a little now, with some coffee and biscuits to help. Pinky remained sat in her mobility scooter while Jamie played butler, as Sallie called it. “I’m sorry for-”

“Don’t say sorry. You have nothing to say sorry for.” Pinky reassured. “It’s a natural reaction. Besides, it helps me understand you more.”

Jamie returned again, placing a glass of water in front of Sallie, and she gave him a mute smile. Jamie smiled back, gently butting his head onto hers as an old sign of ‘It’s okay’ between them, and he began to scoop white dust into the water. Sallie blinked.

“Uhh…?”

“Don’t worry, darling. You’ll need that later.” Pinky explained. Sallie didn’t question it. She only assumed it was salt. When Jamie was finished, Pinky held her hand up almost dramatically. “Jamie, fetch me my cane, please!” She announced in a melodramatic voice, grinning widely.

Sallie remained seated on the cushion, smiling in faint amusement at Pinky’s acting skills, turning to see Jamie pick up a thick, black cane that was decorated with a brilliant assortment of rocks and diamonds, matching its owner completely. Handing her the cane, Jamie grabbed one of Pinky’s arms and helped her stand up, making the older woman wheeze in exertion.

Pinky stood up gradually from her mobility scooter, standing surprisingly tall despite her age, her long, purple gown flowed majestically onto the floor. Pinky smiled at Jamie in thanks, patting his arm. “I’m getting too old for this.” Pinky chuckled.

“Shut it. You’re only Sixty-nine.”

Pinky’s emerald eyes widened in mock-horror.

“Sixty-nine?!” She piped up, seeing Jamie attempting to run away from her, and she swiped the cane at the back of his head at a frightening speed. “I’m _only_ fifty!”

Jamie immediately returned to his seat, knowing that Pinky couldn’t chase him, but it was all banter at the end of the day. Pinky cleared her throat, trying to remain ‘ _professional_ ’ and returning to her job. “ _Anyway_ ,” She stated loudly, chuckling. Sallie was smiling, though, so it was okay. Carefully, Pinky began to pace around the room slowly, taking small steps, using her fabulously decorated cane for support. “This next stage is the hardest of them all. It’s Confrontation.”

Sallie watched and listened intensely. And Pinky carried on. “Confrontation is just as it is. _You’re_ confronted by _your_ thoughts, all those thoughts manifested in your mind. Those that are deepest and strongest will confront you more so.”

“How come I’m being confronted? Isn’t it normally the other way around?”

Pinky smiled, her jade eyes shining.

“Normally, yes. But with _this_ method, we’re taking a step back into the primal state of our minds.” Pinky tapped a finger against her temple. “Our minds are psychic, and of course, as we and as our world evolved, we began to rely more on technology rather than our own minds.” Pinky paused. “You ever had _Deja-Vu_?”

“Uh…yeah, though not for a very long time.”

“It’s very similar to that. But with this, you’re confronted by almost everything at once. You’re witnessing what your mind has been trying to tell you, but it’s been too clouded with judgement and emotions. I’m _hoping_ , should this go well, it will give you the answers you seek.”

Sallie frowned, looking over her shoulder at Jamie who noticed her expression of disbelief, and he nodded.

“This is what she did to me too, Sal. This shit _does_ work.” Jamie said.

“Is it…is it going to hurt?” Sallie asked eventually, turning her attention back onto Pinky. Pinky tilted her head from side to side.

“It…varies.” She said honestly. “Depending on how painful the thoughts are.” Pinky looked at Sallie sadly. “I have a feeling it _might_ be a bit painful for you, considering your background and current affairs.”

Sallie shut her eyes, and Pinky watched as she slowly opened them again after a small moment of reconsideration.

“I’m ready when you are,”

And that filled Pinky and Jamie with pride.

“Well done, darling.” Pinky grabbed her cane into her other hand, hobbling towards the sitting woman, and standing before her, Pinky gradually lowered herself down, her jade eyes holding onto Sallie’s gaze in an almost hypnotic lock. Pinky studied Sallie’s tired eyes for a time. “You really do love him. Never felt such a love like yours to him.”

“Hm?” Was all Sallie could say, frightened in disturbing the working woman.

“Your love is flawed. It’s not perfect, nothing like a fairy-tale. But…that’s what makes this so beautiful. It’s _real_.” Pinky smiled kindly, brushing a lock of Sallie’s hair away from her face. “My poor, unfortunate soul. You’ve lost so much, and yet felt as though you have gained so little.”

The little Brit said nothing, but her silence agreed with Pinky. Pinky cupped Sallie’s cheek with one hand, and her gaze was unmoved. “I know what you’ve brought, darling. Take it out.”

Pinky watched Sallie’s eyes squint, and notice it wasn’t fear of revealing it, but the terror of what she might find. Whatever she had, it meant too much to the little Brit for it to be tainted. But Pinky had no control of Sallie’s thoughts…

Releasing her face, Pinky watched as Sallie’s head bowed to the black bag, unzipping it gradually.

Jamie leaned forward on the sofa, watching in silent fascination as Sallie fished her hand inside of the bag, and she pulled out a leather dummy-mask, ropes of now-deceased dreadlocks swung sorrowfully from the mask’s skull. Jamie cocked his head to the side. It seemed a lot messier, a lot less distressed compared to the mask he saw Corey wear last night. However, even he felt something peculiar about this mask, and he knew Pinky was experiencing it full force. He could tell when she stared intensely, her eyes reading it frantically. And to his surprise, Pinky responded to it as if it was a _real_ person. But that was because Pinky _understood_ the world Sallie was in now.

“May I?” Pinky asked carefully, holding her hand out in ask of holding the mask. She watched Sallie’s fingers hold onto it tightly as if it were her child, and in a strange way, it _was_ , the child of Sallie and IOWA.

But Sallie’s fingers promptly loosened, and Sallie held it towards Pinky. Pinky took the mask carefully, holding the distressed mask before her. She eyed up the rotting leather finish, dirty with musty greens and inky, oily blacks around the features. Pinky sniffed, and she could smell the scent of old hair, realising that what she held wasn’t just a Halloween mask, but it was the old face of a being that Sallie was currently trying to help. This is what Corey used to be, and now Sallie cherished it, becoming one with it.

Pinky had seen this before, maybe not with masks, but with other sentimental items. It’d be cruel and wrong if she were to judge Sallie for her connection in masks and personas when she herself believed in shiny rocks and stone statues of an unnamed buddha.

Pinky took a deep sigh after a time, eyeing up the details of the depressed mask. “You poor things, you both have been through so much.” It wasn’t a question.

Jamie was watching the scene deeply, never interfering, merely observing what untold treasures Sallie had inside of her. From the way Pinky was reacting, this was a case she had never handled before, and its piqued Jamie’s interest. Pinky has had plenty of experiences with many different people, so to see her so stunned and speechless was truly extraordinary. Pinky’s eyes finally turned to Sallie. “Does it have a name?”

_Self-Titled…_

Sallie licked her dry lips, feeling tears returning to her again at the name.

 _Self-Titled_ …would it be considered _Slipknot_ now, the name of the band? That name never felt right with her, nor could she ever call it Corey because it _wasn’t_ Corey anymore. Only an empty shell of a man she once knew…All of the innocence lost and gone, what’s left of a pure connection of a man who meant everything to her. Her light, her Faith…

_Pure, unadulterated, innocent…victim…_

“Purity.”

Jamie blinked, frowning softly.

“Purity. Such a beautiful name.” Pinky spoke soothingly, however, the world a blur around herself and Sallie. She was in her space now, focusing on the main matter. “Why is its name Purity?”

“Because…” Sallie shook, shutting her eyes hard to stop the tears from falling. “Because it is what Corey was before IOWA…pure and innocent…then he became cruel and destructive…this is the last essence of what is left of his pure nature…both are targets of a destructive world…”

“And you see yourself in Purity, yes?”

Sallie’s lips tightened in protest, emotionally breaking before Pinky, but she nodded, sniffing. Her eyes remained closed.

“Have you worn Purity before?”

“Yes…”

“How does Purity make you feel?”

“I…I don’t know…” Came a trembling whisper. “I didn’t wear it long enough to know…”

_Last time was a rampant sex act that didn’t last…_

Pinky paused for a time, her emerald eyes glancing at the mask in her hand, at Sallie, and back at the mask.

“Would you…wear it for me please? I think it’ll help us find our answers…”

Sallie bravely looked up at this point, Pinky a hot blur of tears when she opened her eyes, her cheeks wet already. She turned and looked at Jamie, seeing if he would judge her for accepting it.

Jamie watched her back, hands clasped before his face, bright blue eyes intense. He nodded once, and she knew he accepted her regardless in what she did. When Pinky handed Sallie the newly christened Purity back, Sallie pulled her hair back, opening the mask and it shook in her hand for a time, as if she were contemplating about it.

“It won’t possess you.”

Sallie’s tearful eyes looked at Pinky, who was smiling like a mother to her. “You have _every_ control in this. Trust Purity won’t take you.” Her eyes glistened. “ _Remember_ who it was before you,”

_That stupid, arrogant bastard Supervisor that bullied and abused me at work that suddenly became my best friend and eventual saviour…_

Sallie choked in emotion, pushing the mask to her face and wept softly, rubbing his now deceased dreadlocks against her face in sorrow, mourning for the loss of a man she had lost months ago.

Rubbing her tearful face against Purity, Sallie sobbed silently as she tried to reconnect with a lost soul from her life, and Jamie heard her whisper something:

“Please don’t hurt me…”

Jamie felt his heart squeeze in agony at this, his own eyes stinging in woe at the sight. Sallie had been hurt again, and Jamie had to extinguish the sense of justice that riled inside of his chest. A part of him wanted to beat Corey up, but he knew that wouldn’t be right. In Pinky’s words:

_Corey is as much of a victim in this as Sallie is…_

And Jamie respected that.

After a few moments, Sallie opened the mask and pulled the leather headwear over her head, feeling the tight interior pulling down at her hair uncomfortably, clinging onto her face with a passion that was not there before, like she had given it life after it nearly drowned and it was breathing. She caught a whiff of Corey’s musk and she felt another wave of tears falling from her.

“How do you feel?” Pinky asked after a time, once Sallie composed herself, her hands running over her masked face as if she was uncertain how she looked like, like she was given sight for the first time and was feeling to believe.

“I…” Sallie hesitated, closing her eyes. Pinky noticed with interest that Sallie’s sobbing was calming down, her breathing deepened, and now she was relaxing. “Safe…”

“What makes you feel safe?”

“I’m…not too sure…” Sallie whimpered, her lips quivering, tears staining and sticking to her. “It’s tight…but it doesn’t hurt. It’s…weirdly nice. Comforting…I can…” Another sob hitched her chest. “I can smell him on me…”

“Corey.”

Sallie nodded, losing strength in talking again when the name of her _Faith_ was mentioned.

“Maybe that is how he made you feel.” Pinky suggested, readjusting her jewelled cane. “Would you feel comfortable if I started the Confrontation while you were with Purity?”

“Yes please…”

“Good.” Pinky smiled softly. “Then we shall begin.” Lowering herself down slightly to Sallie, she held her chubby hand out. “Close your eyes and think about Purity.”

 _Purity?_ Jamie cocked a brow. Why Purity when she should be thinking of Corey? But as always, he didn’t interfere. He could only watch at this point, leaning back on the sofa as Sallie obeyed and closed her eyes.

Pinky calmly placed her palm onto Sallie’s forehead, shutting her own eyes.

“Think about Purity. Think about how Purity makes you feel, how _safe_ and warm you feel.” Pinky’s soft instructions were soothing to Sallie, her shoulders relaxing eventually as all of her muscles ease. It was like taking a yoga class. And for once, the silence was not piercing.

It was _peaceful_ …

A deep exhale finally left Sallie.

“Now, before you open your eyes, let me warn you.” Pinky continued, her voice enchanting. “Open your eyes _slowly_ …”

_Slowly? Why was this spoken with such intention?_

Sallie swallowed hard, and as commanded, her tearful eyes gradually opened, seeing Pinky before her, just as she was when she closed her eyes. Sallie calmed down after this-

But something told her to look to the side of Pinky, to the _left_ …

And Sallie’s eyes peered through the eyeholes, slowly turning to see a figure standing beside Pinky suddenly, donned in a blood-red jumpsuit, and there stood ‘Purity’, mirroring the same body as Corey when he first started the band, the eyes and mouth holes were black emptiness, however, unreadable.

A small gasp of alarm leapt out of her throat, jolting slightly away in surprise from the sudden presence of Purity.

“It’s okay,” Pinky hushed promptly, feeling the frightened reaction. “I can see him too.”

Sallie stared up at Purity, her eyes huge and emotional.

“What’s going on?” Sallie whimpered, animal fear leaking in her voice.

“Do not worry. This is normal.” Pinky smiled tenderly, her eyes remained closed. “If you trust Purity enough, you’ll find the answers. Purity is the key, in your case, it is what’s missing.”

Sallie stared, trembling, watching as Purity silently squat down, painfully slowly as his vacant black voids for eyes stared back at Sallie, like a cutscene from a frightening horror movie. Sallie didn’t dare move.

“Pinky…I’m scared…”

“Why?”

Sallie’s pupils grew smaller.

“I can’t…see his…eyes…” Sallie managed to choke, fear beginning to paralyse her body. But Pinky hushed her again, warming the freeze out of her.

“It’s okay, it’s okay…It’s how you’re perceiving it.” Pinky reassured. “There is nothing wrong with that…”

Sallie said nothing. Instead, she stared at Purity, as he slowly cocked his head to one side, observing Sallie as if she were a small animal in the wild. And, eventually, Purity’s hand moved, reaching out, and held it before her, offering it to her. “He’s offering his hand,” Pinky added, understanding the situation perfectly clear despite having her eyes closed.

“What do I do?”

“What do _you_ do?” Pinky reflected, knowing that now was not the time to guide her anymore. All was based on her instincts.

The little Brit looked up at Purity for a long time, trying to read deceit, but she couldn’t _read anything_. The fear was what was pulling her back.

She swallowed a hard lump, and soon found herself reaching up for the hand, grabbing it. His hand felt terrifyingly cold.

Purity gently pulled Sallie up to her feet, and when Sallie looked back, she saw that she was still sitting on the floor, with Pinky holding her palm against her masked forehead.

 _Go…_ Pinky whispered, her voice suddenly deep and loud inside Sallie’s skull. _Go and seek your answer…_

Unable to speak at this point, Sallie turned back to Purity, seeing the masked figure holding her petit hands with both of his, pulling them both to his mouth as if to kiss them. Once he was done, he pulled Sallie towards a tall mirror that sat behind Pinky.

Purity stepped towards the mirror, its reflective surface not mirroring his or Sallie, only the woken world around them. Purity stepped into the mirror, and melted effortlessly through it, pulling Sallie with him…

And Sallie didn’t stop. She followed his lead, holding his hand desperately with both her own hands, and she felt herself effortlessly walking through the surface of the mirror, vanishing out of the world.

Jamie, unaware of what had happened, watched Pinky and Sallie in the centre of the room, and knew that this was now the waiting game. He was in the waiting room while this appointment happened, and he watched in silence…

Whiteness.


	58. SPIT IT OUT!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AUTHOR'S NOTES:-  
> This chapter is heavily influenced by The Shining for reasons. I'll write the references of certain scenes at the end for you, because I'm a nerd and love you all. <3 Plus, I'm gonna have fun and pop pictures in this chapter. I'll probably will only do it in this chapter because it refers to the SPIT IT OUT music video, which I love~
> 
> ENJOY!
> 
> WARNING:- This chapter contains:  
> \+ Scenes from The Shining  
> \+ A rape scene  
> \+ A mash-up of fucked up thoughts that the human brain should never comprehend.

Soundless footsteps.

Sallie knew she was walking, though she felt nothing. Like she was floating in the centre of space and time, no concept of reality anymore.

_Is this what Pinky sees? This disembodied sensation of the subconscious…_

Her hands held onto Purity’s tightly, trembling in fear of losing him, and not where he was taking her. The masked companion noticed her distress, and he turned around, slowly, like a dream, a blur aura of bright white and soft glows.

Through her own mask, she watched as Purity looked at her and grabbed her face gently, pulling her towards him and kissed her forehead, their dreadlocks weaving together like a lover’s reunion.

Sallie opened her mouth to speak, but instead, her thoughts came out.

_What’s going on? Where am I, this is fucking weird?_

No answer. But even as she stared at Purity, she realised that he had no intentions in harming her. Just like Corey before he went to this dark era that was IOWA, she was in the hands of a soft soul that was lost but could _feel_.

_I’m scared. I’m scared, I don’t know what’s happening…_

Purity tilted his head to one side slowly, watching his little lover panic, smelling the fear that was mounting inside of her. He placed a finger inside the eyehole of her mask, and painstakingly carefully, he pushed it where it touched her eyebrow, gliding up on her forehead, narrowly missing her panicking eyes.

He fingered at her forehead soothingly.

Looking into his eyes, he was reminding her to remain calm, that panicking was not going to solve anything. Purity then seized Sallie’s shoulders, slowly turning her around as if about to waltz, and made sure she was looking at him, so that she wouldn’t notice-

Sallie looked over her shoulder to see a door suddenly there, open, a black void of nothingness contrasting against the white of this space she was in. And immediately panicked when she felt Purity’s grip tightened, _pushing_ her towards the void. Scrambling, her hands reaching for his arms and face, trying to stop him from overpowering her.

He began to get forceful, trying to force her through the doorway, his head angled down ominously.

_Stop it! Stop it, no! I don’t like this! I DON’T LIKE THIS!_

And, on cue, Purity aggressively shook Sallie off him, throwing her into the black doorway behind her. She stumbled on her own boots, falling backwards into another world that was entirely cut off, and another came into view…

…Sallie collapsed onto plush carpet, her hands barely catching herself on a few steps that led to a small apartment. Sallie grunted in annoyance, glaring over her shoulder to see a door behind her, and it closed.

_The fuck…I can’t…fuck, my head…_

Whining, Sallie pressed her face into the carpet, the scent of fresh fabric deep in her nose as she tried to stop the spinning that leisurely began to impair her vision.

Deep breaths. They sounded so staggeringly loud in the silent apartment, a strange place she felt as though she has been in before, but she was certain this place doesn’t exist in reality.

_Where have I seen this carpet before? Where do I recognise this smell?_

_I know this place…yet I don’t…?_

“Sweetie?”

Knowingly, Sallie gradually lifted her head to the source of the voice from the little few steps she had fallen on.

Another deep breath, and Sallie picked herself up. Her face was still heavily clad with the mask, feeling the leather binds tightening, the weight of the dreadlocks swinging like pendulums. She gathered herself up and began to walk up the stairs, the silence ever so pressing against her ears. She stepped to the top, and instinctively turned to see a bedroom.

Again, she recognised it, but couldn’t quite place her finger on it. There was the white door beside the double bed, and she sensed danger radiating from the door.

 _Avoid that Door…_ Came the primal urgency, unexplainable. But her attention was taken by the figure that sat on the bed, slumped in a dark cobalt nightgown was a man. Masked. Mirroring her own mask, except his mask was the definition of depression, hatred and _suicide_.

IOWA stared back at Sallie, who seized from where she stood by the door, watching as IOWA stared her back. Slowly, IOWA lifted an arm to her, indicating for her to approach him.

And stupidly, she approached him. Sallie, at this point, realised she wasn’t in full control of her body, sitting back inside of her head, watching vaguely through weary eyes of what was about to come, forced to watch a movie that she knew would end terribly horrific. And yet…

Sallie was standing beside IOWA now, and carefully he took her hand and pulled her onto his lap, tucking her there just like…

…The house-party. The house-party back at her old home during her birthday. Sallie recalled that wonderful night, the first time she had laughed, cried, sang and smiled all at once, never feeling such a quelling amount of happy emotions inside of her for a long time.

Thinking she could die from experiencing this overdrive.

IOWA was sitting in the armchair, where Corey had slept on after drinking too much during that house-party. Sallie was vaguely aware that there were others sleeping, but she saw nothing but shadows, those details not important?

They were wrapped in a blanket like that had before, the scent of alcohol, latex and leather intense.

_Sex._

IOWA’s hands were moving. One hand tucked beneath the blanket reached at the back of her thighs, cupping it there, edging seductively close to her ass. The other, however, curved around her head, pulling her face to his, and IOWA kissed her forehead, their masks rubbing.

“ _Are you having a good time?_ ” IOWA asked, slowly. And Sallie responded, as if reading a script from a famous horror movie.

“ _Yes, Dad_.”

_Dad? Why the fuck…how come I…_

“ _Good. I want you to have a good time_.” IOWA cooed softly, nuzzling his face into her neck. Sallie felt his lips on her neck, warning her what intentions he had.

“ _I am, Dad_.” Sallie spoke, her voice drained from emotion. Then: “ _Dad?_ ”

“ _Yes._ ” IOWA replied, and Sallie felt slightly sickened how he responded to his new name as if she had been calling such a name for years. But what she didn’t understand was that she was recalling these lines from somewhere…the scenery wasn’t right…it didn’t align correctly-

“ _Do you feel bad?_ ” Sallie asked eventually, and she watched as IOWA stopped kissing her neck, slowly pulling away from her neck and looked back at her. Sallie shook, seeing her reflection in his strange, furious eyes. He looked so _livid_ at such a question, but his voice did not match up with his expression. His voice was soft, loving.

“ _No. I’m just a little tired._ ”

There was something scratching at the door of her subconscious, the words that the best friends spoke were hinting something back at her. She had never said these words before, but she _knew_ someone had said these words near her.

“ _Then why don’t you go to sleep?_ ”

For a long while, IOWA said nothing, as if churning for a response. He blinked, deliberately, and a wicked glee came into his eyes.

“ _I can’t_ …” He shifted suddenly, heaving Sallie into the air, the blanket dropping onto the floor as he stood up, and Sallie silently screamed in surprise at the unexpected turn of events. Sallie couldn’t breathe…

…when her body hit the bed, spawning back into the strange bedroom. It was dark, but the smell of mildew and mould was thick. Heat. So hot, fire. Sweat and grunting, flesh slapping, slipping and sliding, bashing and thrusting and clashing and smacking and slapping and spanking-

IOWA was hunched over his little bride, his dreadlocks aggressively whipping as he insistently fucked Sallie on the bed, like a rampant animal in heat with the desperate desire to mate. Immediately, feeling her entire body striking in white-hot pain, Sallie’s hands grabbed IOWA’s naked shoulders, feeling-

Blood. His body had been mutilated, cut and scarred and bloody from severe amount of self-harm. The kind of assault that would leave a body _dead_ from so much blood loss.

IOWA was snarling in the air, teeth gritted, saliva dripping and flicking messily onto Sallie’s mask, feeling his cock stabbing her insides in a mating ritual of hate.

Borderline rape.

Sallie kept screaming, and screaming, her hands gripping onto his face and pulled at the mask, but it did little good. It was like trying to rip flesh off a face of a human.

“ ** _I LOVE YOU, SALLIE. I LOVE YOU MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE IN THE WHOLE WORLD, AND I’D NEVER DO ANYTHING HURT YOU, NEVER!_** ” IOWA bellowed, his voice echoing the lines yet again from-

Sallie thrashed beneath IOWA, the monster forcing sex upon her brutally, _raping,_ his affectionate words falling on deaf ears.

“ ** _YOU KNOW THAT, DON’T YOU? HUH?!_ LOVE!**” IOWA’s screaming was incredibly powerful now, screeching inside Sallie’s skull, piercing at her ears. “ **YOU ARE, MY FAVORITE…!** ” Ramming his face into her neck, and he bit down hard, harder than sexual play, harder than hatred, like a cannibal about to eat its first meal. Sallie’s hands flew over her face to prevent IOWA getting too close as she screamed inaudibly, feeling the bed rocking hard beneath her…

…then it stopped. The screaming stopped. All action seized. And as Sallie fearfully peered through her arms, she saw that IOWA was not there anymore. She was not naked, nor sweating or hurt. Like a terrible nightmare, she awoke from it.

Quickly, Sallie sat up, panting hard.

_Okay…okay, what the FUCK is even happening? I don’t understand how this connects with everything! Where’s Corey? How can I…_

Sallie stood up as her train of thought left the tracks, falling down the mountain of terrible realization.

“ _Perhaps he needs a good talking to, if you don’t mind my saying so_.” A voice wavered at Sallie from behind, echoing faintly. She turned on her heels, her vision blurred the bedroom out, and suddenly a staggeringly amount of red and white attacked her sight.

Sallie stood in the public bathrooms inside of an important hotel, red and white, pristine.

Again, familiar, and Sallie felt herself becoming closer and closer to the source of this place. Standing behind her was a masked behemoth, silver and intimidating, staring down at her in his sophisticated suit, a handkerchief in his gloved hands, dabbing Sallie’s masked face with it.

Mick. Black hair perfectly cascading down both sides of his face.

“ _Perhaps a bit more_.” Grumbled the behemoth, looking down at her with cold-stone eyes.

Sallie blinked, the room promptly resuming back to Joey’s home, back to where Sallie and Mick were talking, the day after her aggressive first time with IOWA. However, the room was desaturated from all colours, and Mick stood perfectly still, donned in the black suit and white gloves, unfazed by the change of scenery.

“He was drinking heavily again, wasn’t he?” Recycled words, the same words Sallie spoke to Mick, a flashback.

“Jodie had done a number on him,” Mick replied, rehearsing those very same words.

_Jodie._

Like a trigger to a gun, Sallie felt her body clench hard in fury, the root of all of her problems. It was not dead.

Sallie closed her eyes, inhaling deeply through her nose and exhaled out of her mouth.

“ _Perhaps she needs a good talking to, if you don’t mind my saying so_.” Mick repeated, same tone, same words, different subject. And when Sallie opened her eyes, they had returned to the fictional red and white restroom of the infamous movie, contrasting ever so sharply against her eyes and his black suit. Mick continued to stare at her, unmoved. “ _Perhaps a bit more_.”

Now, Sallie was staring hard back at Mick, unblinking. _Listening_.

Mick continued, a deep rumble rippling from his throat.

“The **Jodies** , **ma’am** , **she** didn’t care much for **Corey** at first. One of them actually stole a packet of matches…and tried to burn **him** down. But **you** corrected them, **ma’am**. And when your **heart** tried to prevent you from doing your duty…you corrected **it**.”

Mick watched coldly as Sallie’s eyes grew in unspeakable rage…

…But all of that rage seemed to have subsided. A watery grave.

Someone was here. From where Sallie laid, she stared at the shocking green and white ceiling, the scent of lukewarm water, blurring her hearing. Water inside of the mask, lapping over her lips.

_He’s here._

Rising up from the bathtub, Sallie gradually turned to the semi-transparent curtain, grabbing it tenderly and pulled it away from her, seeing the figure of IOWA standing by the open doorway to the bathroom.

He loomed in the doorframe, seemingly too big?

He watched, waiting for Sallie to do what she was about to do. He knew it, and she knew it.

With elegant calculation, Sallie stood up from the bath, water trickling down her pale body, full naked, her hair lank and damp, plastered against her back.

IOWA’s chest heaved in anticipation, his eyes staring intensely in excitement.

With no control, IOWA’s hand reached inside of his pants, already grabbing his cock as Sallie, with no control, stepped out of the bathtub, walking deliberately-slow towards her destructive lover, her small wet feet patting the floor.

Already, IOWA had scooped her in his arms, pressing his clothes roughly against her naked body, seeing her watching him with a dull want in her gaze, but it was enough for him. Their masks pressed together, wet leather and sweating latex meshing against one another like flesh of breeding humans. His lips pressed hard, cruel, holding a determined sense of ownership as he cradled her.

And Sallie did nothing to stop him. She encouraged it, her hands running up his chest wantonly.

_I love you. I love you so…so why won’t you love me?_

IOWA pulled his head away from Sallie, looking at her through dreamy stares.

The mirror behind him reflecting the body of a stranger, and Sallie’s eyes glanced to the mirror to see her reflection staring back at her. Pretty small eyes lined with black make-up. Deep red lips, sharp cheek bones, a fiery gorgeous lock of hair.

_This isn’t me! This isn’t my face!_

Jodie was staring back at her, her naked body pretty and unmarked, decorated lovingly with tattoos of Corey’s names and faces all around, entwined with vines of a loving willow tree.

A vague babble of sorrow escaped Sallie’s quivering lips, seeing how Corey was embracing Jodie in the mirror, and immediately compared herself to this. And just as Sallie turned to face IOWA, their positions have been exchanged. She was hugging a naked tattooed man instead, pale-skinned, skinny and a little taller, donned in a white gasmask, the tube that fed the man oxygen tied around her arms. Through the eyeholes, eyes peered through black, eyes she recognised-

Sid.

And Sid was laughing, hysterically, mockingly to see that she had fooled herself into her fantasy. Sallie pulled away immediately from Sid, trembling as the small DJ followed her, his laugh unending, arms stretched out as he approached her.

His eyes sparked deceit and hysteria at her infidelity to Corey. Guilt spread through Sallie’s chest, a terrible weight on her heart.

_Why are you laughing at me?! Why won’t you fucking help me?! Stop it! STOP IT!_

Staggering backwards, full of panic, Sallie retreated from the bathroom, her eyes unable to leave Sid as he followed her out of Room 237…

…The door slammed by itself, leaving Sallie alone in the long hallway. Panting hard, her heart beating terribly inside of her skull, a headache induced sickness. Stumbling on her boots, Sallie threw her back against the wall, staring at the door, hands over her masked face as she tried to compose herself, trembling uncontrollably.

_I want out. I fucking want out! Let me out! LET ME OUT!_

Her fingers found the hemming of the mask, and she tried to pull it off her head, wondering if this would subdue these experiences. To her bitter luck, the mask refused to shift. As if glued and stitched to her face, it hurt to even try to remove it, pulling at her own flesh and hair. She stopped promptly, whimpering.

_Pinky, I don’t understand any of this. I’m scared! I’m scared! I don’t know why-_

“ _Hello, **Virgin**.”_

That was when it hit her. Sallie heard the voices of two men, ever so close to her, as if someone leaned down and whispered it in her ear, crystal-clear through the mask. Her dinted eyes stared forward, seized from moving as the heavy set of understanding consumed her, holding her down.

“ _Come play with us, **Britain**_.”

**_THIS FUCKING MOVIE-!_ **

Despite this comprehension, Sallie dizzily looked down the hall, seeing two twins donned in matching blue and white frocks, holding hands, watching her from down the end of the hallway expectantly.

Just like in her nightmare, she stared at Shawn and Chris, their masked doppelgangers watching her excitedly.

“ _Come and **sing** with us, **SIC**_.”

Fully aware what was happening, Sallie was noticing the distinguished errors and changes in everyone’s words, understand what was being quoted and butchered, tangled and messed up in a mash-up compilation of reality and fantasy.

_The Shining._

Why was this movie so significant that it had to haunt her own memories? Then again, was the Shining trying to tell her something? The movie itself was about a man becoming crazy in isolation, and perhaps it could be referring to…

And, as if the breaking of the fourth wall released her voice-box, Sallie managed to talk, high and clear.

“Where’s Corey?!” She hollered swiftly, her voice bouncing off the narrow white hallway, the famous orange and red patterned carpet going on forever. Her new-found voice didn’t stir the masked twins.

They remained still, holding hands, watching her, judging, cold reptilian eyes pinned onto her.

When nothing was said, a small noise shot between them, and an axe materialized between Sallie, Shawn and Chris, the object falling heavily onto the carpeted floor. And remained there.

_The fucking axe. Why is this even here?_

The axe, being infamously known in the movie itself, Sallie was certain that she should grab it, not allowing anyone to take it. To protect herself.

A flash of blood. A dead body on the floor, and with a cry of fear, she dropped the axe, covering her eyes as she slumped onto the floor, the headache striking harder and harder, agonizing the side of her face, a toothache rising and bleeding into her nose.

_Take the axe._

Immediately, she snatched the axe from the floor again, holding it up, and she didn’t experience the vision this time. The warning subsided.

“ _Forever…_ ” Chris spoke soothingly, his voice soft and echoing.

“ _And ever…_ ” Shawn added, just as eerily calming, their lips motionless.

“ _And ever_ …”

It wasn’t until then instincts took it upon itself to make Sallie turn back from the percussion twins and flee down the hallway…

…running and running and going nowhere. The hallways stretched beyond Sallie’s comprehension, unable to take note that she had been running around in circles. She skidded to a halt when she saw a small figure further before her. Sat in a small, colourful tricycle, the white mask with blood dripping from the eyes and forehead.

Heavy breathing, Sallie stared, watching the small, long hair boy begin to cycle down towards her, harmlessly.

Joey.

“Jo-Jo!” Sallie piped up, relief flooding in her voice, watching him approach her, riding the tricycle, hands gripping on the high handlebars. “Shit, help me! I don’t know what to do. I don’t know if…I…” Her words fell from her lips, brows furrowed as she heard the sound of something alarmingly loud. The sound coming off from…the tricycle?

Sallie stared, noticing how the sound of an approaching motorbike was hammering towards her, and quicker than an eyeblink, Joey was suddenly perched on a Harley Davidson, the engine riling through the ceiling, and at a terrifying speed, the Harley rushed to meet Sallie, who only turned to run away down the hall…

…it felt like she was running forever, the sound of the Harley behind her but never striking her. Her eyes turning to see an open door, and merely glancing to see two costumed figures within the walls of a small room, no doubt practising lewd acts.

A vague glance of Paul, his pig-mask watching her as she ran, and even though she wanted to stop, her body refused. Possessed with this quelling urge to escape, it refused to let her go…

…The floor wavered like the surface of the ocean, her foot losing its balance and she fell.

Backward. Spinning around, her body awkwardly landed on the steps, barely registering that someone was already falling down the stairs, whites and cream clothing, blond-hair. The blurred image of a jester.

Sallie managed to hurdle herself out of the way without thinking, and watched as Jim tumbled down the stairs like a ragdoll, falling, falling…forever and ever…and ever…

**_FUCK!_ **

Whimpering in unspoken horror, Sallie stood up to survey the situation she had landed herself into, watching as Jim fell at the bottom of the stairs, too quickly, and practically fell through the floor, merging through the floor like a glitch in an old video game, merging and he was gone.

Stunned, blinking, sweat falling into her eyes and lips, Sallie could feel her mind going light, the dizziness intensified. And just as she shut her eyes hard, trying to control the surging world around her, _he_ spoke…

…” _I’m not gonna hurt you_.”

Here she was again. In the half-landing of the stairways, the grand, stunning hall of the Colorado Lounge. Just like her nightmare, Sallie looked down to see IOWA already following her, chasing her at a teasingly, slow pace, cruel and mocking. Yet persistent.

_Get away from him…_

The baseball bat that Jim left behind, propped against the wall, caught her attention, and she immediately grabbed it, holding it up ready to strike should IOWA get too close.

“ _Stay away from me_ …” Sallie whimpered, trembling uncontrollably, her boots lifting and gradually backing up the stairs. She knew what happened in the movie, but she didn’t know how this was going to end, and frankly, it terrified her. The unknown end result of this situation.

IOWA was suddenly too close to her, and she swung the bat instantly, narrowly missing IOWA, who grinned mockingly at her silly attempts in stopping him. Holding his hands up, trying to coax her back to his arms.

“ ** _Sallie!_** ” IOWA called out, his tongue coming out of his grinning lips, flicking teasingly, almost sexually, and it sickened his little bride. Sallie swung again, trying to get his hand just like the movie, and missed. Her dreadlocks swung in momentum.

“ _Stay away_!” She screamed again, and faintly, she heard the movie itself playing in the background, the distressed Wendy screaming at her husband. Sallie walking in Wendy’s steps.

“ _Darling, **Sallie, Little Meep,** light of my life, I’m not gonna hurt you. You didn’t let me finish my sentence.” _Cocking his head to the side, both hands up, he continued. _“I said ‘I’m not going to hurt you…I’m just gonna bash your brains in!’ I’m gonna bash them right the fuck in! **I’m gonna fucking slice your throat and fuck the wound**!”_ IOWA cackled disturbingly, enjoying the look of animal terror in Sallie’s eyes.

“ _Stay **the fuck** away from me_!” Corrupted speech, something broke between the words.

“ _Put the bat down, Wendy…_ ”

“ _Stay away_!” Another swing. Another miss. IOWA was stepping closer now, gaining up on her, closing the space between them and tried to seize her wrists.

“ _Stop swinging the bat, **Jodie**_.”

 _Snap_.

In her abrupt hatred, Sallie no longer hesitated in hurting IOWA, and instead brutally struck the bat not at his hand, but across his head. Frantically, IOWA’s whole body spun around at the passing of the bat, the drive fantastic, blood splattering against the white walls.

And IOWA fell. Falling. His eyes catch Sallie’s gaze for a mere second, the look of betrayal and white-hot wrath.

“ ** _YOU CHEEKY FUCKING BIIITTTCCH!_** ”

The stairways shook hard at the roars of his voice, the same level of ferocity as when he sang _Scissors_ , seizing Sallie like a deer in headlights as she watched the bloody-masked man tumble to the bottom of the stairs.

Like the nightmare.

And IOWA slumped onto the bottom of the stairs, where Jim had vanished.

But IOWA remained there, blood pooling behind his skull. The baseball bat shook in Sallie’s hand, tears filling her eyes and she whimpered, seeing how IOWA didn’t move.

Like he was dead.

_Oh no…please…please…I didn’t mean to…I can’t…please…_

She shook hard, waiting to be moved to another scene. She wasn’t.

The bat lowered slightly, the tip of it trembling.

IOWA suddenly stood up and began to immediately thunder up the stairs at a terrible speed.

A scream ripped through Sallie’s throat, turning and running up the stairs, hearing IOWA panting and grunting in bloody fury, blood staining the banister and walls of the stairway, running and leaving the scene of the crime.

“ **I’LL FUCKING RAPE YOU! I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU! END YOU, MOTHERFUCKER!”**

Sallie ran as fast as her feet could take her, never daring to look back, knowing that IOWA was a few steps away from catching her.

A door spawned before her, and she entered it regardless, having no time in registering what just happened, and slammed the door behind her, locking it with the bolt and chain…

…Silence.

Nothingness. The scent of wet tiles and cold air.

Resting herself against the door, her shaky hand reached for her face, rubbing the bridge of her nose and eyes, panting excessively. Her throat burnt from screaming, and once she looked up from her hand, she noticed she was in a small bathroom-

An ear-splitting snap appeared right above her head, feeling the air passing of something that suddenly chopped at the wooden door. Sallie immediately dropped onto her knees, screaming and scrambled to the corner of the bathroom, watching with horror as an axe was hacking its way through the door, and Sallie knew this was it. Unarmed somehow, trapped with no other escape, Sallie pressed herself pitifully against the wall, trying to phase through it, watching as IOWA hacked the axe against the door with determined, harsh swings, grunting and snarling from the other side.

_FUCK! FUCK! FUCK! I’M GONNA DIE! I’M GONNA DIE!_

Sallie stalled, her mind clicking to-

She looked up to see the small window above the bathtub, the one Danny escaped through but not Wendy. Sallie remembered watching that scene thinking how she could escape from such a situation.

The door shook as another swing caved in, the door breaking down quickly.

“Corey, stop it!” Sallie screamed in protest, seeing IOWA through the broken splinters of wood. Another aggressive swing, and finally, part of the door was gone, a small, narrow gap in the wooden pane. Sallie felt her heart sink coldly as IOWA pushed his face through the gap, his eyes blackened, terrifying.

“ ** _MY NAME IS FUCKING IOWAAAA!!_** ” He shouted, a dreadful ferocity of power behind his voice, making Sallie’s hand grab the sides of her head, covering her eyes, the window and mirror shattered against the bellow.

IOWA thundered a cruel laugh at his masterpiece, his free hand snaking into the gap and reaching for the lock.

_I HAVE NO FUCKING KNIFE-_

_BOOT HIM._

Sallie lifted her boot, and with all of her strength, she kicked her boot full-on IOWA’S hand, crushing his wrist against the brass doorknob, the awkward position almost breaking his wrist. IOWA howled like a wounded beast, glaring at Sallie, offended that she even laid a fucking _finger_ on him. He leaned back, swinging the axe full force into the door, forcing Sallie to back away from the crazed axeman, his swings determined for the kill.

_The window._

Sallie decided to not engage with IOWA anymore, turning around and rushing for the window. At that point, IOWA’s axe shattered the entire door, breaking it into countless pieces, and there was nothing left between Sallie and IOWA. Axe in hands, IOWA roared as he hurried behind Sallie, axe swinging.

Sallie jumped into the bathtub, and phased through the base of it, vanishing out of sight…

…and she landed on her knees. Warmth. Everything was warm. Not a breeze. She held onto something.

The only vague thought she could make out was that she wasn’t outside.

Nor was she feeling _okay_ …

There was an indescribable numbness to her mind, blinding her thought process. She was hiding, tucked away.

Fear? No.

She barely managed to distinguish what was running through her head, how her muscles clenched and tightened.

And the hall she was in wasn’t cold. But it wasn’t hot.

It was her body that was burning.

Footsteps. Footsteps approaching.

“Sweetie? You here?”

Sallie said nothing. She waited.

“Honey…please, come back! I miss you! I love you!”

Sallie didn’t answer. This wasn’t a question directed to her.

Dark eyes glared through the mask, looking up, waiting, biding her time until the time was right.

_There._

Her grip tightened around the axe, standing up suddenly and sprung out of her hiding spot, wailing a battle-cry, like a Viking about to go into war, axe held back and she turned around to her prey. Through bloody eyes, she saw the stunned Jodie seizing on the spot as she watched Sallie appear, the axe swinging with such a force and she felt the brute, blunt force of the axe clipping inside of Jodie’s ribs, blood and fractured ribcage burst through her slim body. Jodie screamed, blood bubbling from her red lips as she looked at Sallie, disbelief that the small, pathetic woman would actually commit an act.

Yanking the axe out, satisfaction bled inside of Sallie’s skull, feeding her ecstasy, closer than sex, and she swung the axe again at her victim, the axe caving in harder and harder, splitting the body in two, and with a final swing, Sallie mustered all of her hatred and aimed higher, the axe snapping Jodie’s neck clean.

A ding from an elevator sounded between the screams, and Sallie snapped around, bloody axe and red painted everywhere, watching as the elevator doors open, and was expecting to see the waterfall of black-red blood.

But instead, the door opened, sliding to the side, and revealed the entire band of her brothers there, watching her act with curiosity.

“I did it, love.” Sallie snarled; her lips bruised. Saliva leaking from the corners of her lips. “I fucking did it…now you’re mine…forever…and ever…and ever…”

The room began to flood with blood…

…The axe snatched from her hand. When Sallie turned to glare at the person who ruined her fun, everything was dark. Dark and cold. Icy. Frost and snow. The hatred was gone now, and all she had left was fear. Fear of the dark. Fear of the cold. Fear of-

“ ** _SALLIE!_** ”

IOWA’s voice sounded from the skies, echoing through the towering hedge-maze. Further down, she saw IOWA turning around the corner, axe in his hand, and he stalled, seeing his little bride standing there. A disgusting grin pulled at his lips, and he began to hurry towards her, the axe held tightly in his hands.

Her boots shuffled in the thick snow, dragging the white powder in the air.

_Fucking cocaine. Too much of it. Overdose. OVERDOSE. OVERDO! OVERINDULGE!!_

**_O̵͖͍̼̓̓̽͗̃̉͌̌̂͂̌̕͝V̶̛̜̫̘̜̑̽̂̃͆̔̿̐͌͐͠͠Ë̸̗̾͛̑̌̊̈́͋̇̊̐̽̑̈Ṙ̷̡̢̰̯̑͒͑̓͘D̸̡̺̽̿̂̔̓͗͝O̷̢̢̧̳̩̩̩͙̝̜͉̩͍̮͉̎͌̄̾̾̕͝Ş̴̖̦̥̯̦̽̋̄E̴͔̹͖̯̫̳͕̻̟̝̜͚̽̽͜͜_ **

“ ** _SALLIE_** _! I’M COMING. I’M COMING, **BABE**!_”

Sallie didn’t have the strength to scream back. Her axe murdering had depleted all of her energy, and all she could do was run…and run…

“ _YOU CAN’T GET AWAY, **BABE**! I’M RIGHT BEHIND YOU_!”

_Keep running. And running…and running…_

_But aren’t I running away from the problem…?_

Sallie’s pace slowed down, that thought making her reconsider what she was doing.

_I’m always running away. Always fucking running away!_

Slowly, Sallie turned back, seeing IOWA further down, his body silhouetted against the harsh whites and blues of the maze.

“ ** _SALLIE_**!” IOWA bellowed again, limping closer and closer towards her. “ _LOVE ME!_ ”

“Give…” Her lip cocked achingly against the unforgiving coldness, turning back fully to her lover, and to IOWA’s amusement, he watched as his little bride ran towards him, determined, furious. “GIVE ME BACK MY COREY!” She screamed finally, rushing to meet the demented masked man.

“I AM IOWA!”

“ _COREY_!”

“ _IOWA_!”

“ ** _COREY MOTHERFUCKING TAYLOR!_** ”

The lovers met at that point, IOWA holding the axe above his head, eyes locked onto his little bride, who instinctively reached for his mask, gripping both sides cruelly and with enough force, the mask began to split apart, revealing a dying man through the torn seams of ripping latex.

She saw everything about the man who now, delicately, held her in his arms. She saw the horror of Corey beneath the mask when he was revealed, their tearful eyes locking for a mere second, choking against the icy air. The eyes of a broken man. The eyes of absolute _Purity._ The calm, the inner peace of Purity was revealed to Sallie, the meditative trance that had to be attained in order to cleanse the impurities that took her mind, the ones that Pinky was able to harvest for her in order to confront them.

Sallie felt an unravelling around her, threads of thought and feeling coming free, and something terrible approaching, something _awful_ …

The axe struck into her back…  
  


…the strike of the axe was too great. _Far_ too great.

In a seizure of agony, heartache, terror and hate, Sallie snatched her head away from Pinky, eyes flicking open and she screamed, a terrible sound of grief and misery that seemed to last for ever. Jamie stood up suddenly, seeing the alarmed expression on Pinky, her own large face pink and flustered.

“What the _fuck_ happened?” Jamie cried out, seeing Pinky trying to promptly compose herself from what she saw.

“Her…her pain is great.” Pinky gasped, a hand on her panting chest, watching Sallie writhing on the floor, hands clutched onto her skull as she thrashed, screaming. “There was far too much to comprehend. She has been through so much. The pain…I cannot stop it. It’s what she has hidden.”

Unable to just stand and watch, Jamie hurried over to sit next to Sallie, pulling her into his arms. She turned her face into his chest and screamed again, the noise muffled by his cotton shirt and his body. He gathered her closer and held her while she wept and raged.

“Pinky, what did you see?” Jamie asked, clutching onto his screaming friend. “I’ve never seen this happen before.”

Pinky was taking several deep breaths, trying to recall all that she saw. During the Confrontation, Pinky too saw everything Sallie experienced, a mesmerising movie of horrors from a famous film and reality.

“Sallie…” Pinky whimpered. “She…has so much…” Losing her words, Pinky tried to describe what she saw simply for Jamie. “She’s terrified of confronting the problem because she thinks she’s going to lose everything…she has lost so much; she’s terrified of everything…”

Jamie watched Pinky with a mute depression, cradling Sallie in his arms, knowing that Pinky was correct.

That’s what made this worse.

Pinky never made errors…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Shining Reference:  
> IOWA and Sallie [Bedroom]:  
> \+ Jack and Danny scene in the apartment.  
> JACK:-  
>  Are you having a good time?  
>  DANNY  
>  Yes, Dad.  
>  JACK  
>  Good. I want you to have a good  
>  time.  
>  DANNY  
>  I am, Dad. Dad?  
>  JACK  
>  Yes.  
>  DANNY  
>  Do you feel bad?  
> JACK shakes his head.  
>  JACK  
>  No. I'm just a little tired.  
>  DANNY  
>  Then why don't you go to sleep?  
>  JACK  
>  I can't. I have too much to do.
> 
> \+ Quote from same scene.
> 
> JACK:-  
>  I love you, Danny. I love you more  
>  than anything else in the whole  
>  world, and I'd never do anything to  
>  hurt you, never... You know that,  
>  don't you, huh?
> 
> Mick and Sallie [Restroom]:  
> \+ Conversation with Mick and Sallie in Chapter 33 Exodus merged with scene from The Shining.
> 
> GRADY:-  
>  Perhaps they need a good talking  
>  to, if you don't mind my saying so.  
>  Perhaps a bit more.  
>  My girls, sir, they didn't care for  
>  the Overlook at first. One of them  
>  actually stole a packet of matches
> 
> and tried to burn it down. But I  
>  corrected them, sir. And when my  
>  wife tried to prevent me from doing  
>  my duty I corrected her.
> 
> Sallie and IOWA/Jodie and Corey/Sallie and Sid [Bathroom in Room 237]  
> \+ Scene of Jack seeing Lorraine Massey in the bathroom of Room 237
> 
> Sallie, Shawn and Chris/ Danny and the Grady Twins [Hallway]  
> \+ Scene of Sallie encountering Chris and Shawn, dressed as the Grady Twins.  
> GRADY GIRLS  
>  Hullo, Danny.  
>  Come and play with us.   
> DANNY back to camera in f.g. The two GRADY Girls at  
> end of corridor.  
>  GRADY GIRLS  
>  Come and play with us, Danny.  
>  CUT TO:  
> The two GRADY Girls laying on floor covered with  
> bloodstains. Bloodstained axe on floor in f.g. Walls  
> covered with bloodstains.  
>  CUT TO:  
> M.L.S. Two GRADY Girls, holding hands and standing at end of  
> corridor.  
>  GRADY GIRLS  
>  For ever...  
>  ... and ever...  
>  ...and ever.
> 
> Sallie and Joey/Danny on tricycle  
> \+ Danny riding his tricycle down the hallway scenes
> 
> Sallie with Paul and Bear-Man  
> \+ Scene of Wendy seeing the man and another man dressed in a dog costume.   
> MAN, dressed in Dog's costume, kneeling at foot of bed. He  
> leans back and looks towards her. MAN, in evening dress,  
> leans forward and looks at WENDY. CAMERA ZOOMS IN on them.
> 
> Sallie, Jim and IOWA/Wendy and Jack [Stairs scene]  
> +The stair scene was Wendy hits Jack with the bat
> 
> WENDY:-  
>  Don't hurt me! Don't hurt me!  
>  JACK  
>  I'm not going to hurt you.  
>  WENDY  
>  Stay away from me,  
>  JACK  
>  Wendy
> 
> WENDY  
>  Stay away...!  
>  JACK  
>  Darling, light of my life, I'm not  
>  going to hurt you. You didn't let  
>  me finish my sentence. I said 'I'm  
>  not going to hurt you... I'm just  
>  going to bash your brains in!' I'm  
>  going to bash them right the fuck in.  
>  WENDY  
>  Stay away from me!
> 
> Sallie and IOWA/Wendy and Jack [Bathroom scene]  
> \+ The infamous well loved scene of 'HEEEERREEE'S JOHNNY!'
> 
> Sallie killing Jodie/Jack killing Halloran  
> \+ This scene is from Jack murdering Halloran
> 
> IOWA and Sallie in the maze/Jack and Danny in the maze  
> +The scene of Jack chasing Danny through the maze


	59. Forever Home

****

****

**1995, April**

“Phew…that was one hell of a vision…” Jamie sighed eventually.

“Heh…yeah…”

Perched on his Harley Davidson, Jamie glanced over his shoulder, looking back at the depressed Brit, her gaze never lifting from the floor. She was trying to keep a strong smile on her face, as always, but it was as if even she didn’t believe in it, and so the effort was pathetic. Even she was tired.

“Hey,” Jamie’s lips pulled into a companionable smile, his arm reaching back and pulling Sallie into a hug. “It’s going to be okay,”

Sallie didn’t refuse the hug, but she didn’t acknowledge his comment, knowing it to be as futile as tissue in water.

Jamie had brought Sallie back to the Malibu beach, the same place they walked when Sallie recited her troubled backstory with him. The sun was about to set, the skies a brilliant yellow and orange, and soon the glowing red of the sunset will follow.

But instead of walking, Jamie parked his Harley Davidson by a lookout, giving them the brilliant view of the ocean carpet up ahead. Seagulls overhead squawked, signalling its fellow companions that it was time to return home, and like an impressive trained air-force, they formed together and flew away from the ocean, returning to their rocky homes at the mountains behind them.

Jamie and Sallie sat on the Harley Davidson together, watching the peace of the beach as surf-riders grew tired of the arrogant ocean and was returning home themselves, back to families.

_I want to go home…_

“I…just don’t get it…” Sallie spoke eventually, her throat so dry it was almost difficult to speak. “ _The Shining_ …why that movie…?”

Jamie pouted, giving her a soft shrug.

“Maybe it’s exactly what Pinky says.” He replied, holding her tightly. “You see yourself as Wendy, watching a man go insane…” Jamie stopped suddenly, realising how he said it came across almost insulting. “I’m sorry, Sal…”

“It’s okay, I get what you mean…”

Gradually, Sallie turned on the Harley, stepping off the monster-machine and stood there, stretching her legs. Jamie watched her sorrowfully, seeing her actions so drawn out, so defeated. Of course, what she just had experienced was mentally draining, and the best thing for her to do was sleep, but…

“I just…” Jamie’s gaze dropped. “…never seen a Confrontation that severe before…” He frowned, his handsome features looking aggressive suddenly.

“Typical.” Sallie murmured bitterly, folding her arms and turning towards the ocean. “It’s always fucking me…”

The darkness in Jamie’s features vanished promptly, knowing that Sallie was in need, and that his fury can wait. He looked back up at her and stared at her for a time. Seeing how exhausted she was, how drained…how so _done_ …

With a grunt, Jamie lifted his leg over the bike and got off it, slowly approaching Sallie. And when he stood beside her, she had her eyes closed. “I just…” She stopped, opening her eyes again and looked at the beautiful ocean ahead of them, the orange twilight reflecting in her weary eyes. Finding no real words to support how she truly felt, she gave up speaking her mind.

“From what you’ve told me…” Jamie started slowly. “…Corey is in trouble. He needs help.”

“I’m helping him-”

“ _Professional_ help, Sal…”

Almost offended, Sallie glared back at Jamie, but the Malibu Cop wasn’t phased by the look of disrespect. He was talking to her as a friend, not as an officer. “You _are_ still helping him. You’re the outside source he needs to drag him out of his addiction and out of this…IOWA-guy…”

Sallie watched Jamie, a coldness slowly filtering from her dark eyes. But she still remained defensive.

“I’m trying…I just don’t know where to turn…”

“You’re flying back home tomorrow, aren’t you?” Jamie felt the hurt in his voice, but promptly hid it. “I am certain there are places in Des Moines that can help with drug addiction. It’s not an uncommon thing, particularly at these depressing times…” Stepping beside her now, he placed a hand on her shoulder, giving her a brave smile. “You finding him the right help is the best you can do right now. Maybe he’s so blind that he can’t see the real dangers of this, or just refuses to. If you get him the help, that help will be strong enough to pull him out of this ditch. And you _will_ save him.” He lowered his head down close to her. “Because I know you want to save him. You _are_ a hero, Sal. An Angel…”

Finally, all of the fury drained from Sallie’s face, and she resumed back to looking so defeated. But she listened to Jamie, listened to his every single word. And she returned his smile, only faintly.

“Thank you…I’m trying…”

“And you will succeed! I know you will!” Jamie patted her back firmly, pulling her into a tight embrace, his arms holding her small body against his. Sallie could feel his armour padding and handcuffs digging into her body, but it didn’t matter. Closing her eyes, she held onto Jamie tightly, pressing her face into his chest.

And for a long, pressing moment, the two old friends held each other in their arms, the hissing of the ocean breaking the silence.

“Hey Sal,”

“Hmm?”

Jamie began to brush down Sallie’s hair.

“There’s…something I’ve been wanting to ask you…”

That made Sallie’s heart slow down, a little apprehensive. Breaking the hug, she looked at him calmly.

“Yeah?”

Jamie’s gaze locked with hers, smiling kindly.

“Ever since you’ve came back, I’ve been thinking a lot about us.” He stalled, and for the first time, he didn’t know what to say. “You mean so much to me, I…” He stopped, and he spied Sallie cocking a brow at him suspiciously.

“I swear to god, Jamie, if you’re gonna confess some hidden love for me right now, I’ll kick you in the balls.”

Jamie smirked, lightly punching Sallie on the arm.

“Fuck off, I’m not that cliched!” He chuckled, a warm tone to his voice. Shaking his head, he continued: “Nah. It’s not that. Basically, ever since you’ve told me about how your life is, and how things have been going, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, and…” He wrung his gloved hands together for a time, wondering if this was even a good idea. “I just thought it might be better if you, y’know, come back home.”

“Home?”

“Home.” Jamie announced proudly, opening both arms and held them out, displaying all of California’s beauty. “Your _old_ home, back when life was better! California.” He dropped his arms. “Come live with me. I’ll get you a job on the force, and we can live better together.” He grabbed her arms and rubbed them; his smile genuine. He was, in no way, forcing Sallie to leave all of Iowa behind, but he wanted to give her that option. “You’d probably be happier here too. Pinky and I will look after you. Iowa is a boring state, it has nothing, right? You told me.” Studying her reaction, which she was mutely surprised, he added: “Come live in California with me, Sal. Come back _home_.”

Sallie stared at Jamie for a long moment, realising the severity of what he proposed.

To return back to sunny California…to come back to the State where she felt as though her life was coming back. She had left behind so many good people here, and if she returned back to this State, her life would be sorted! No more money problems, no more Sam, no more…

The heaviness of her heart overwhelmed her thoughts at that point, and she realised what she really wanted.

She gave Jamie a gentle smile.

“Thank you for the offer, Jamie. I really appreciate it.” Sallie said, reaching up and stroked his face, a sign of gratitude. “But…I can’t do that. I have too many ties back in that shitty state. It may not be as colourful or as vibrant as California…but there _are_ some really good people there I just _cannot_ leave behind. Otherwise I would in a heartbeat if I have nothing there. But the truth is…” She hesitated, thinking back about all of the good times in Iowa, and Jamie felt his heart lift and flutter when he saw Sallie, at last, smiled fondly. “I think I’ve found my forever home. Iowa _is_ my home.” Her eyes lifting back to Jamie, she added: “I’m sorry.”

“And that’s completely okay.” Jamie replied, his smile brightening, glad to know that despite Sallie’s troubles, she was _happy_ there. She was with good people, and that gave Jamie peace, knowing she was in good hands. “I’m glad you can say that. Not a lot of people can feel like that.” He placed a hand on her head and ruffled her hair slightly. “Just know that you have friends in California too.”

“I know.” Sallie grinned. “Maybe you should move to Iowa with us. It’s not as busy as California, and we need more cops there!”

Jamie snorted, waving his hand.

“I’ll have to ask the boss about that.”

“Can’t you do a transfer to another police station?”

Jamie glared at Sallie playfully.

“Pinky _is_ the boss.”

“Oh!” Sallie piped up, and she burst out laughing at her dumb mistake, becoming a little more lively than before. “Okay, but the offer is always there too!”

“Thank you.” Jamie replied, pulling her closer to him, and he kissed her forehead, drawing her into a firm hug. “I’m gonna miss you, Sal.”

“I have _always_ missed you. This isn’t going to be any different.” Sallie replied against his shoulder.

At that point, Sallie and Jamie heard the chime of a phone. A Nokia phone. It was Sallie’s phone. Rolling her eyes that it ruined the moment, Sallie pulled her phone out and looked at it.

**UNKNOWN**

“Ugh…I’m just gonna ignore it-”

“Answer it.” The Malibu Cop piped up. Sallie looked back at Jamie in question. “It could be important.”

_What if it’s just a damn scammer call?_

“Fine…” Sallie murmured, answering the phone and lifted it to her ear. “Hello?”

Jamie watched in silence, trying to listen to the one-sided conversation. “Yeah, speaking…” And Jamie’s blood began to run colder, and _colder_ , as he watched Sallie’s expression drain from all glee, and replaced it with mute-horror.

“Sal….” Jamie spoke, worry thick in his voice.

“I…” Sallie stopped, listening to the call intensely. “Where…?” Another pause. “I’ll be there ASAP…” Sallie swallowed a hard lump in her throat, her voice becoming so fragile.

“Sallie…” Jamie hissed urgently, watching as his friend crumbled before him.

The caller hung up after that, but Sallie remained frozen on the spot, the entire world becoming small now…

April, 18th, 1995.

History was repeating itself now. This was the day of destruction. The day of defeat. The day of absolute nothingness. The day of the dead.

Today, many years ago, was the day Sallie’s mother died. And now, it intended to take someone else away again…

“Sallie…?” Jamie asked, grabbing her shoulders, panic growing in his eyes. “Sal, what’s happening?!”

The phone began to tremble. Her throat seemed to have closed up. Her head began to pound, as if her skull could not contain the enormity of what she had been told. And in that moment, she had returned as a mere child that had just been told her mother was dead…

Corey.

He was in hospital.

_Overdose._

__

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHHH!! FINALLY, IOWA IS COMPLETED! But this is only part 1 of a series! 
> 
> Seriously, guys, I haven't been able to write so long, so well and ACTUALLY complete it too! This is a fucking achievement for me that I've been craving for!
> 
> But fret not, I already have Part 2 ready, and will post it ASAP! But I just want to say thank you, THANK YOU ALL, for your amazing support, comments, Kudos, faves, ect. It really brought me out of a terrible, depressing rut that influenced this story so heavily. And now, part 2 is afoot, and I promise you, drama will ensue, but it'll be a little different compared to IOWA. It's gonna be a bit brighter, funnier, a LITTLE dirtier... (AKA, probably gonna become erotica at some point!)
> 
> You can find updates, art, and other cool stuff on my Instagram accounts, which I will post updates and fun things:  
> MAIN SLIPKNOT ACCOUNT: https://www.instagram.com/project_iowa666/  
> SLIPKNOT-FANFICTION ACCOUNT:https://www.instagram.com/iowa_fanfiction/
> 
> Enough Jibber-Jabber, we have more adventures awaiting for us all! Thank you all so very much guys, you have all been super amazing!
> 
> I'll meet you all at Inside the (SIC)ness, Part 2: THE SUBLIMINAL ONE!
> 
> ~ Wario-Girl  
> XXX


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